Eustress and Distress

Have you ever thought of stress as a good thing?  I didn't until today when I was introduced to the concept of eustress, coined and researched by an Austrian endochronologist named Hans Seyle.  He studied the effect stress has on the human body and introduced the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) model.

This model has three stages that describe how humans react to stressors (= the traumatic event that acts on the mind as well as the physical body):

1. The Alarm Stage - which is the fight or flight response
2. The Resistance Stage - if the stress situation persists, the body tries to adapt/cope with the stress
3. The Exhaustion Stage - energy depletion due to prolonged resistance occurs, and your health is at high risk of deterioration

Seyle also said introduced the concept of eustress, a stress that we feel good about (such as the excitement of running a marathon), as opposed to distress, a stress that cause us feelings of upset (such as the loss of a pet).  It is important to understand though that both types of stress activate the GAS system.  The way people perceive stress will determine the impact/level of damage caused by the stressor.

Thus, when you face a challenging situation, it is healthier for you to approach it with a positive, 'can do' attitude if at all possible, than with fear.  Your perspective rules your life and your health!  You have the power to improve your health (and life!) by changing your perception of it.  How cool is that?