STRESS

Stress disturbs the body’s homeostasis and enables you to adapt to encountered situations. It is the body’s response to a stressor, which is an internal or external stimulus that is interpreted as a threat to the body’s equilibrium, and prepares it for action. Stress is a natural human reaction and it is not always negative! A certain moderate amount of stress is beneficial to human performance - it stops you slowing down and keeps you on your toes – this is the sort associated with success.

• Positive stress (Eustress) increases vigilance and performance, without doing harm to the body. Distress occurs when stress occurs regularly or constantly, and the person objectively or subjectively has no capabilities to master the situation. This causes unpleasant feelings and is assessed as threatening or overcharging.