Stress can affect people both positively and negatively depending on their perception of the stressor. The body's stress response involves three stages - alarm, resistance, and fatigue - which activate the nervous system and hormones like adrenaline to prepare the body for a threat. Prolonged stress can negatively impact physical and mental health through effects like headaches, digestive issues, mood swings, and a weakened immune system. Understanding stress, stressors, and the body's response can help manage stress effectively.

1. Understanding Stress
(1:55)
Click here to launch video
Click here to download
print activity

2. Stress can affect you in both positive
and negative ways.

3. stress
perception
stressor
psychosomatic response

4. What Is Stress?
How you think about a challenge determines
whether you will experience positive or
negative stress.
Feeling stress is a natural part of life. Stress is
the reaction of the body and mind to everyday
challenges and demands.

5. What Is Stress?
How much the stress of an event affects you,
however, depends in part on your perception of it.
Perception
The act of becoming aware through
the senses

6. Reacting to Stress
Stress can have both a positive and a
negative effect.
Positive stress can
motivate you and
inspire you to work
harder.
Negative stress can
cause you to feel
distracted, overwhelmed,
impatient, frustrated, or
even angry. It can harm
your health.

7. Causes of Stress
Stressors vary among individuals and
groups.
People, objects, places, events, and situations
are all potential stressors.

8. Causes of Stress
The effect of a stressor depends on your
experiences and perceptions.
Stressor
Anything that causes stress

9. Your Body’s Response to Stressors
Stressors activate the nervous system and
specific hormones.
When you perceive something to be dangerous,
difficult, or painful, your body automatically
begins a stress response.

10. Your Body’s Response to Stressors
The stress response involves three stages.
Alarm
Resistance
Fatigue
Your mind and body go on high alert. This “fight-or-
flight” response prepares you to defend
yourself or to flee from a threat.
If exposure to a stressor continues, your body
adapts and reacts to the stressor. This stage lasts
for a brief period.
If exposure to stress is prolonged, you begin to
tire and lose the ability to manage other stressors
effectively.

11. Your Body’s Response to Stressors
1. Alarm begins when the
hypothalamus, a small area at
the base of the brain, receives
danger signals from other
parts of the brain. The
hypothalamus releases a
hormone that acts on the
pituitary gland.

12. Your Body’s Response to Stressors
2. The pituitary gland secretes a
hormone that stimulates the
adrenal glands.

13. Your Body’s Response to Stressors
3. The adrenal glands secrete
adrenaline. Adrenaline is the
“emergency hormone” that
prepares the body to respond
to a stressor.

14. Your Body’s Response to Stressors

15. Stress and Your Health
Ongoing stress affects all aspects of your
health.
The physical changes that take place in your
body during the stress response can take a toll
on your body.

16. Stress and Your Health
Prolonged stress can lead to a psychosomatic
response.
Psychosomatic response
A physical reaction that results from stress
rather than from an injury or illness

17. Stress and Your Health
The Physical Effects of Stress
 Headache
 A weakened immune system
 High blood pressure
 Bruxism, clenching the jaw or grinding the teeth
 Digestive disorders

18. Stress and Your Health
Mental/Emotional and Social Effects of Stress
 Difficulty concentrating
 Irritability
 Mood swings

19. After You Read
Reviewing Facts and Vocabulary
1. Define the word perception.
The act of becoming aware through the
senses

20. After You Read
Reviewing Facts and Vocabulary
2. What are three cognitive stressors for
teens?
Poor self-esteem, personal appearance,
not fitting in

21. After You Read
Reviewing Facts and Vocabulary
3. Identify the two body systems involved in
the stress response.
Nervous and endocrine systems