#58 Decoding Stress: From Acute to Chronic
Last week I wrote about the trend in stress searches on google in Ireland and internationally, as well as briefly discussing what stress is and how it's created.
This week I'll go through the different types of stress, and next week the different coping strategies commonly used.
This theme of stress is leading into the a free webinar on stress that I am hosting. It's on Monday May 13th at 7pm IST and will cover all these topics and more. You can read more about it here or you can register for free at this link.
Different types of stressors
With stress, it's helpful to understand how frequent you're stressed and then how it's created. Below, I'll go into frequency first and causes after.
Frequency of Stress
Short term: Acute Stress
Short-term stress that comes from recent pressures or anticipated demands about the future. It's the most common form of stress and typically manageable, but can be exciting in small doses. (Think meeting tight deadlines, preparing for a critical presentation, or handling a challenging client call).
Medium term: Episodic Acute Stress
When acute stress happens frequently, leading to a life filled with crisis and chaos. This type is common among people who take on too much or those who can't organise their schedules well. (Think regularly facing high workloads or constantly juggling between multiple high-pressure projects).
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Long term: Chronic Stress
Stress that feels endless and inescapable, like the stress of a bad relationship/marriage, an extremely taxing job, or financial insecurity. Chronic stress can be damaging over time, leading to a breakdown of physical and mental health. (Enduring ongoing workplace instability, continuous interpersonal conflicts, or long-term career dissatisfaction)
Cause of Stress
I'm focused on psychological stress but it's important to know that within stress, there are a range of types such as physiological, environmental and physical among a lot more.
Within psychological stress, here are the 7 most common ones I've come across in my work:
Steps to Identify Stress Frequency and Causes
Below are often the first steps for someone who has identified stress as an area that they'd like to improve on:
Until next week,
Patrick