TEXT 4. COPING WITH STRESS

Negative and Defensive Coping.Coping refers to active efforts to master, reduce or

tolerate the demands created by the stress. When we cope, we consciously think and make a

decision to deal with the problems we face. However, we may cope in negative ways. We may

drink too much, eat too much, and worry too much. In order to protect our feelings of selfesteem

and self-respect, we may unconsciously resort to various distortions of reality, frequently

referred to as defense mechanisms.

Defense mechanisms do not eliminate the problems that are the cause of anxiety, but they

help us hide or disguise our feelings and temporarily deal with anxiety or stress. Defense

mechanisms have two primary characteristics. First, they distort and deny reality. Second, they

operate unconsciously, so that we are unaware that we are using them.

Rationalizationis perhaps the most widely used defense mechanism, because we all feel a

need sometimes to explain our behaviour. When the explanations offered are reasonable,

rational, and convincing - but not real reasons - we say a person is rationalizing.

Repressionis the exclusion of painful, unwanted, or dangerous thoughts and impulses

from the conscious mind. They may be the cause of our "forgetting" an appointment with the

doctor. Projectionis when we attribute our own feelings, shortcomings, or unacceptable

impulses to others. Reaction formationis a defense in which impulses are not only repressed,

they are also controlled by emphasizing the opposite behaviour.

Sublimationis when we redirect our basic desires toward a socially valued activity. An

example is the hostile individual who was beaten by a parent and later finds a reproductive outlet

in establishing an organization for victims of child abuse. Displacementis when the person

redirects strong feelings from one person or object to another that seems more acceptable and

less threatening. Your boss gets mad at you, but you cannot release your feelings on your boss,

so you go home and yell at your spouse.

Defense mechanisms are designed to help us escape the pain of anxiety in stressful

situations. The more aware you are of the defense mechanisms you use and why you use them,

the more likely will be your attempts to face your stressful situations in an open and honest

manner.

It seems that some individuals are stress resistant and others are more susceptible to the

harmful effects of stress. People are quite different from one another in their susceptibility to

stress. Some are like horses. And some are like butterflies. The horses tolerate great amounts of

stress without faltering or breaking stride; the butterflies fall apart under the slightest demand or

pressure. Whether you are a horse or a butterfly depends on several ingredients; your physical

constitution, how well you take care of yourself , and your resources for coping with stress. The

tougher you are, the more you can take. If you have a stress-prone constitution, are lazy about

exercise, eat poorly, abuse stimulants, don't get enough sleep, or don't use your coping resources,

you don't stand much chance against stress.

One characteristic that seems to distinguish stress-resistant people from those who are

more susceptible to its harmful effects is known as hardiness.Hardy persons seem to differ from

others in three respects: (1) commitment - they have deeper involvement in their jobs and other

life activities; (2) control - they believe that they can, in fact, influence important events in their

lives; and (3) challenge - they perceive change as a challenge and an opportunity to grow rather

than as a threat to their security.

We have three different options when we are confronted with stressful events and

situations. We can: 1. Change environments, i.e. we might choose to move to another city,

change jobs, separate from our spouse, and so on. 2. Change the environment. We can often

work to improve the situation that is causing us so much stress. 3. Change ourselves. It is not

really the event that causes stress, it is our reaction to it - our attitude. Our reaction to any event,

stressful or not, depends on our thoughts and feelings about what happened or what should have

happened.

Date: 2016-01-03; view: 1567