Back in the day
nope..think....farther back....
a little further...
Even older... (even though these guys look stressed!)
back...when
hunting and gathering was the thing to do,
(
)
and we as humans had to contend with
these little things called saber tooth tigers
and wooly mammoths for food-
our
stress response was a major reason those cave-dudes survived!
Fight or flight with bonus healthy tips!
I’m sure you have heard it all
before. “Fight or flight!” Which is an apt description for the acute (or short
term/immediate) physiological stress response. In caveman days, that translated to deciding in a split
second whether to take down that puny velocirapter or run from that giant
tyrannosaurus.
In Jurassic Park, a little DNA replication led to "modern day" animal fight or flight response by these kids...
In the “fight or flight
response”, the body immediately terminates any physiological activity which is
non-necessary for immediate survival, and focuses on the things that will make
you stronger, faster, and more effective right away. In a flash, your body will
release the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine causing the increased
breathing, and heart rate. Glycogen is released from the liver, providing
additional sugar necessary for quick action and energy. (You can see how all
this would be super helpful dino fighting). Many times, within seconds, the dino vs. cave dude event is
over, so this would end the stress response.
And in the caveman days. . . that
was it! The stress response was resolved when either the caveman was eaten or
the dino was beaten!
Not so in the 21st
century. Now some of you are thinking, “well my teacher, sibling, friend,
significant other (you fill in the blank) is worse than a velociraptor or
sabertooth tiger!” And that may be true- (sorry about that)…
vs.
…when we have altercations or
fights with others that cause short, quickly resolved stress, it is more like
the dino v. cave-dude metaphor.
But so much of our stress in the
21st century comes from psychological stressors, or from long term
and chronic stress. Many of you can think of various long term stressors in
your life, there are no shortage in our society. In the video below, a leading researcher on stress describes why we get ulcers, and Zebras don't!
Even things that we may think of
as positive events can contribute to stress. Moving, transitioning away to
college, graduating, major accomplishments and awards can place expectations
and stress upon us. There are also less obvious stressors, even down the way we
treat our bodies with alcohol, food (yes, ARBYs, Wendy’s, Red Robin and
McDonalds are stressors!) and smoking.
When we allow chronic stress into
our lives, something beyond the epinephrine starts to occur. After prolonged
stress response in our body, different hormones are released which increase our
blood pressure, metabolism, and change our fluid and electrolyte balances.
(Jones & Bartlett, 2010).
These hormones that are released also raise blood sugar levels, increase
insulin resistance, and suppress bone growth as well as the immune system.
Ouch. One could get really
stressed out just taking one look at the effects of prolonged stress.
We’ve discussed in previous blogs
the dangers of increased blood pressure leading to heart and kidney disease,
and one can only imagine the ill (pun intended) effects linked to all the other
physiological changes stress causes.
It is crucial for your health
that your stress level is controlled and you take every effort to decrease or
eliminate chronic stress. Unfortunately in our 21st century
constantly connected society, elimination of chronic stress may be impossible,
but combating it with whatever stress reducer works for you is not only an
investment in your mental well-being, but also in your physical well-being.
Don't let chronic stress get ya' down like this cat!
While there are numerous ways of
reducing chronic stress, I thought I would put this out there to all of you who
beg for dogs or cats and are rejected by your parents:
- Owners
of dogs and cats report more general well-being, less depression, and lower
levels of stress than non-pet owners. (Budge, Spicer, Jones & St. George,
1998).
- Also,
in a one year study post hospitalization of coronary artery disease, 11% of the
patients without pets died, where as only 3% of those with pets had passed
away. (Friedmann, Katcher, Lynch, and Thomas, 1990).
So, I guess you could say it’s a
matter of life or death that you get a pet?
- HIP2Health RN --------------------------------------
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What does the HIP2Health RN mean when they say, "Our stress response was a major reason these cave dudes survived!"?
2. In the first video, what signs and symptoms of the "fight or flight" response are the kids in the video experiencing? What about the adults? How to you feel when you are watching the video? Do you notice your body doing anything differently?
3. In the next video, what triggers stress in "cave man time"? how about in the 21st century? Describe the physiological pathways stress takes from the brain throughout the rest of the body according to the video. What does the character do to relieve his stress in the video? What is the result?
4. In the last video, why don't Zebra's get ulcers? Which animal (besides humans) can you infer might be more likely to get an ulcer? Where does the scientist say most of our stress is coming from?
5. Go to the link "even positive events can contribute to stress". Take the assessment. What is your stress score? Name a short term and a long term way to reduce your stress. Also, explain why each will reduce your stress.
6. Do you have a pet? Is your stress reduced by them? If not, do you want a pet? THIS IS NOT A YES OR NO QUESTION. Tell me why you don't want one or do want one if you don't have one, or why they reduce your stress or don't if you do have one.
2. In the first video, what signs and symptoms of the "fight or flight" response are the kids in the video experiencing? What about the adults? How to you feel when you are watching the video? Do you notice your body doing anything differently?
3. In the next video, what triggers stress in "cave man time"? how about in the 21st century? Describe the physiological pathways stress takes from the brain throughout the rest of the body according to the video. What does the character do to relieve his stress in the video? What is the result?
4. In the last video, why don't Zebra's get ulcers? Which animal (besides humans) can you infer might be more likely to get an ulcer? Where does the scientist say most of our stress is coming from?
5. Go to the link "even positive events can contribute to stress". Take the assessment. What is your stress score? Name a short term and a long term way to reduce your stress. Also, explain why each will reduce your stress.
6. Do you have a pet? Is your stress reduced by them? If not, do you want a pet? THIS IS NOT A YES OR NO QUESTION. Tell me why you don't want one or do want one if you don't have one, or why they reduce your stress or don't if you do have one.
Budge, C.,
Spicer, J., Jones, B., St. George, R. Health
Correlates of Compatibility and Attachment in
Human Companion-Animal Relationships. 1998. 6(3), p. 219-234
Human Companion-Animal Relationships. 1998. 6(3), p. 219-234
Friedmann, E.,
Katcher, A., Lynch, J. Thomas, S. Animal
Companions and One-Year
Survival Rates of Patients after discharge from a Coronary Care Unit. July-August
95(4). 1990. p. 307-311.
Survival Rates of Patients after discharge from a Coronary Care Unit. July-August
95(4). 1990. p. 307-311.
Jones, T.,
Bartlett, R., Physiology of Stress. 2010.
p. 34-48.
1. It says that our stress response was a major reason the cave dudes survived and this is true because it could help you get exercise or help the animals not to eat meat if they were stressed and it just helped a lot for them.
ReplyDelete2. They are experiencing the flight response. There are no adults. I feel scared for the kids. No I did not feel anything.
3. The dinosaurs triggered stress in the cave man time. In the 21st century work and homework trigger stress. It says that it goes through your brain and it makes adrenalin causing your heart to beat faster. He exercises to relive his stress. The result is his concentration gets better.
4. They do not get ulcers because they only get stressed when being chased but when the predator backs off they calm down really fast. Monkeys are more likely to receive an ulcer. Most of our stress is coming from being late to places.
5. My stress score is 270.One way is to get more sleep and to run it out. It well help me not be grumpy in the morning and to help me think more while I am running.
6. I do not have a pet. I do not want a pet because its too much work to take care of them.