We shall be running through the concluding part (part two) of t this write-up posted earlier ##
Don't forget this ever that: "Health Is Priceless"
Read on.
Lifestyle Syndrome
In your mind's eye, fast-forward an imaginary film of your life all the way to old age. Do it twice - once with a lifestyle including a large number of behavioural risk factors, and once without them. It is obvious that many small risks can add up, dramatically raising the chance of illness. Stress, if it's a frequent part of your life, visualize your body seething with emotion day after day. If you smoke, picture a lifetime's worth of cigarette smoke blown through your lungs in a week. If you drink, take a lifetime alcohol's assaults on the brain, stomach and liver, then squeeze them into a month, your body would be poisoned, ravaged and soon dead. If you eat a high-fathigh-cholesterol diet, fast-forward a lifetime of heart-killing plaque clogging your arteries.
This discussion is not meant to be a sermon. It is a mere reminder that risk factors do make a difference. To make matters worse, unhealthy lifestyle always create multiple risks. This is, people who smoke are also likely to drink excessively. Those who overeat do not get enough exercise etc (Emmons et al.; 1998).
Even infectious diseases are often linked to behavioural risks. For example, pneumonia and other infections occur at high rates in people who have cancer, heart disease, lung disease or liver disease. Thus many deaths attributed infections can actually be traced to smoking, poor diet or alcohol abuse (Mokdad et al.; 2004).
Stress - Thrill or Threat?
Although stress is a natural part of life, it can be a major behavioural risk factor if it's prolonged or sever. It might seem that stressful events happen to people. Although this is sometimes the case, mere often, stress is a matter of how we perceive events and react to them. Because of this stress can be managed or controlled. It can be very dangerous if it's sever, but it isn't always bad. A stress researcher, Hans Selye, observed that "To be totally without stress is to be dead" (SEL-yay, 1976).
How stress Begins
A stress reaction begins with the same automatic nervous system arousal that occurs during emotion.
Here is a list of some of the typical signs or symptoms of ongoing stress: Emotional Signs- *anxiety, apathy,
irritability, mental fatigue. Behavioural Signs - avoidance of
responsibilities and relationships,
extreme or self-destructive behavior,
self neglect, poor judgement. Physical Signs - excessive worry about
illness, frequent illness, exhaustion, overuse
of medicine, physical aliments & complaints
(Doctor & Doctor, 1994).
When is stress a Strain?
It goes almost without to saying that some events are more likely to cause stress than others. A Stressor, this is a condition that threatens or challenges a person. Police officers, for instance, suffer from a high rate of stress-related diseases. The threat of injury or death, plus occasional confrontations of angry, drunk or hostile citizens, take a toll. A major factor is the unpredictable nature of police work. An officer who stops a car to issue a tragic ticket never knows if a cooperative citizen or an armed gang member is waiting inside.
Pressureis another element of stress, especially job stress. Pressure occurs when a person must meet external demands or expectations (Weiten, 1998). For example, we feel pressured when activities must be speeded up, when deadlines must be met, when extra work is added or when we must work near maximum capacity for long periods.
Coping with Stress
If you have appraised a situation as threatening, what will you do next?
There are two major choices. Both involve thinking and acting in ways that help us handle Stressors. 1. Emotin-focused coping, in this aspect, we try to control our emotional reactions to the situation. For example, a distressed person may distract herself by listening to music, take a walk to relax, or seek emotional support from others. In contrast, 2. Problem-focused coping This is aimed at managing or correcting the distressing situation itself. Some examples are making a plan of action or concentrating on your next step (Folkman & Moskowitz, 2004).
Conclusion
Health is affected greatly by lifestyle and behavior patterns especially those related to stress.
Health is not just the absence of disease or illness. People who are truly healthy enjoy a positive state of wellness or well-being.
Mainntaining wellness is a lifelong pursuit and, hopefully, a labor of love. People who attain optimal wellness are both physically and psychologically healthy. They are happy, optimistic, self confident individuals who can bounce back emotionally from adversity and tragedies (Tugade, Fredrickson & Barret, 2004).
Finally, people who enjoy a sense of well-being also have supportive relationships with others. They do mental work, and they live in a clean environment.
I believe in the Steemit community we have supportive relationship and so we shall maintain good health. Up Steemit.
