This post discusses the definition of stress, the stress response cycle, and seven types of stress: acute, cumulative, chronic, traumatic, transitional, circumstantial, and complex. It also explores the importance of being aware of stress as well as some effective strategies for managing stress. Stress affects everyone. Many of us are living with one or more of the seven types of stress without realizing it. It’s crucial for us to be aware of these seven types of stress because they can have negative effects on our health and happiness. Examples of the negative effects of stress include anxiety, depression, PTSD, C-PTSD, and relationship problems. Let’s begin with the definition of stress.
The Definition of Stress
The simplest definition of stress is adapting to change. Countless times each day change happens. When change happens, we must adapt to it, especially when the change poses a significant threat to our safety. Adapting to change takes us through a stress response cycle as illustrated below.
The Stress Response Cycle
The stress response cycle involves seven different types of stress. Let’s take a closer look at the seven different types of stress.
The Seven Types of Stress
The seven types of stress are acute, cumulative, chronic, traumatic, transitional, circumstantial, and complex. Here’s a brief description of each type.
1. Acute stress is a sudden threat, quickly adapted to and avoided, after which we take time to recover and return to our baseline level. Having a car swerve into our lane, dodging it, and avoiding a crash is an example of acute stress. Almost dropping something expensive and fragile is another example of acute stress. Generally, with acute stress, we move through the stress response cycle quickly.
2. Cumulative stress is an accumulation, over months and years, of unresolved stress-response cycles. These occur at a pace that prevents completion of the resolution and recovery phases of the cycle, as illustrated above.
3. Chronic stress is an accumulation over days and weeks of unresolved stress-response cycles that occur at a faster pace than cumulative stress. Before completely responding to one change, another change begins.
4. Traumatic stress is a sudden, unexpected change that threatens our life or someone else’s. It is so impactful that the stress-response cycle freezes at the point of impact and forms both an unresolved, emotionally-charged stress response cycle and an unresolved, emotionally charged memory of the life-threatening experience.
The memory and its emotional charge remain even as we move forward with our life. When we experience something like the traumatizing experience, the unresolved emotionally charged memory is activated. The emotions of the trauma are stirred up, if not the memory. It seems that our emotional response is out of proportion to what we just experienced.
5. Transitional stress is adapting to changes that involve three phases: the ending of a familiar phase of life, going through an unfamiliar transitional phase, and arriving at and settling into a new familiar phase of life. The hardest phase is usually the one in between, when we’re no longer where we were and not yet where we’re going. Moving and changing jobs are examples of transitional stress.
6. Circumstantial stress is a response to living in circumstances in which we see no end coming soon to threats to our safety. Besides seeing no end in sight, we might often feel powerless to do anything about the stressful circumstances because they are bigger than we are and out of our control. Natural disasters, political upheaval, and economic uncertainty are examples of circumstantial stress.
7. Complex stress is any combination of 1-6 above. Complex stress is often what many experience in today’s world. It’s often the underlying cause of anxiety, depression, PTSD, C-PTSD, and relationship problems.
Now that we’ve covered the seven types of stress, let’s consider being aware of stress.
Being Aware of Stress
Being aware of stress, particularly its emotional, physical, mental, and relationship impacts, is the first step toward managing and resolving it. To become aware of our stress, we must turn our attention inward and attend to how we’re feeling emotionally and physically.
If we’re feeling anxious, irritable, frustrated, exhausted, or depressed, we need to address it. If we’re not sleeping well, have tense muscles in our neck and shoulders, gastrointestinal problems, more frequent headaches, or other physical problems, we need to address them.
When we’re having trouble remembering things, making decisions, or imagining terrible things happening in the future, we’re overstressed. Likewise, regarding our relationships, if we are short-tempered, arguing more, less emotionally close, and spending less time together, we need to be aware of it and take action to reduce our stress.
So, what do we do when we become aware of our stress and its effects? Let’s look at some simple strategies for managing stress.
Strategies for Managing Stress
Here are some simple first aid strategies for managing stress:
1. Heart Smiling. Place your hands over your breastbone, the seat of your emotional heart. Close your eyes, smile a big smile, and breathe into and out from your heart.
2. Pause for Beauty. Take a walk if possible and pause for moments of beauty: flowers, birds singing, children playing, shapes in the clouds, etc.
3. Smell the Flower, Blow out the Candle. Imagine your favorite scent; breathe it in deeply through your nose. Imagine a self-relighting candle and blow it out. Repeat three times or more.
4. Imagine Your Desired Outcome. Imagine how you’d like an upcoming, possibly stressful event to go. See it happening in your mind’s eye. Describe it happening in the present tense.
5. Hydrotherapy. Take a nice warm bath with Epsom Salts and lavender essential oil and listen to relaxing music for 30 minutes. Do this three times a week for at least one week.
These five strategies are simple first aid strategies. To learn even more effective advanced strategies, consider working with me. I specialize in stress management, anxiety, depression, and trauma recovery.
Your next step is to review my website and book your 30-minute initial consultation here. I look forward to meeting you!