What is stress?
Stress may be characterized by feelings of fear, discomfort, worry, anger, frustration, anger, nervousness, and can be caused by several different factors. In most instances, the actual cause of stress might be difficult to establish.
Background
In a demanding workplace environment, it is highly likely for individuals to develop stress. Employees can easily react to harmful relationships at work. Anxiety and depression that are related to the immediate working environment are common in the United Kingdom and especially England. According to the findings by the Labour Force Survey, 487,000 work-related stress was recorded in the 2013/2014 survey of various workplace environments (Stress-related and psychological disorders 2014). This accounted for about 39% of people who departed their work owing to stress. Between 2013 and 2014, slightly over 200,000 new cases of work-related stress were witnessed. Due to the large number of work-related stress, about 11.3 million working hours were lost between 2013 and 2014. The defense, public administration, education, social work and human health sectors recorded the highest losses due to instances of stressed employees.
How stress affects people’s relationships
Stress also interferes with interpersonal relationships. For instance, working hours invades the privacy of individuals and stress permeates the existing relationship.
A recent survey reported that among people living in urban areas, there is an additional number of employees who prefer taking work home. This practice presents several negative consequences to any stable relationships, among family members, spouses and friends. In other words, more working time invades the privacy of individuals in relationships. The stress arising from work is recognized worldwide as a major negative factor in the quality of life. It affects the state of welfare, security and self-esteem of employees. Reduced ability to relate is just one of the symptoms of stress. Hence, the immediate impact of stress on relationships is reduced communication.
Literature review
Causes of stress
A person may feel stressed in certain important moments of his or her life. This may be possibly caused by anxiety, apprehension and concern. Some well-known social causes of stress include:
- Starting a new job or new school
- Moving to a new home
- Get married
- Having a child
- Ending a relationship
Prevalence of an ailment or a disease in an individual or within close relations such as friends and family members is a common cause of stress (Walinga & Rowe, 2013). In addition, it is crucial to mention that some medications can cause or worsen symptoms of stress. These include:
- Certain inhaled medicines used to treat asthma
- Medicines used for treating and managing thyroid
- Some diet pills and cold remedies.
Substances that contain caffeine, cocaine, alcohol and tobacco may equally trigger or aggravate instances of stress among individuals who are already highly predisposed. When these sensations occur frequently, one may experience an anxiety disorder.
Reducing stress
In order to reduce instances of stress, it is highly advisable to eat a well-balanced meal. Quite often, food is panacea for almost all health problems. A balanced nutrition helps the body in many ways (Mujtaba, Lara, King, Johnson & Mahanna, 2010). Adequate intake of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals is essential for the overall well-being of the body. If there is a lack or excess of some of these elements, our bodies need to make an additional effort to make up for them. This leads to even more tear and wear. Besides, there is also the loss of nutrients during chronic stress which is aggravated by the consumption of items such as caffeine, sugar and salt (Shortt, Capaldi, Kim & Tiberio, 2013).
Second, physical exercises can help reduce stress and anxiety disorders. Individuals who engage their bodies in physical exercises have a better chance of minimizing stress. Adrenaline reduces stress, cortisol acts as an anti-inflammatory agent, glucagon increases the amount of glucose in the liver, GH (growth hormone) transmits welfare while endorphins produce the sensation of pleasure and improves the quality of sleep. Other stress reduction measures include changing position and assuming a better posture, practicing laughter frequently and seeking help through psychological counseling (Darling & Heller, 2011).
Aims
To investigate how stress affect people’s life and what we can do to reduce stress.
Objectives
- To find out what the government is doing to reduce stress.
- How to help people who are suffering from stress
Research methodology
This research study will utilize both primary and secondary resources. The mixed resources will provide adequate and comprehensive information that is much needed for the study. This study will largely be qualitative. According to positivism, it will be crucial to apply procedures, methods and logic when gathering and presenting results and analysis. Although anti-positivism refutes the fact that people cannot be assessed in terms of quantities, the study will still require quantitative statistical analysis before making conclusions (Admi & Moshe-Eilon 2010). Systematic sampling method will be used. In regards to data analysis, typology technique will be essential for this study.
Limitations of the study
The study will be limited by factors such as lack of time, inadequate experience, lack of resources, and insufficient knowledge on research. These limitations will be overcome by starting the study early enough, undertaking adequate background research and seeking help from tutors.
Ethical considerations/issues
A written consent will be obtained from participants in the study. Besides, the privacy and confidentiality of participants in the study will be respected.
References
Admi, H. & Moshe-Eilon, Y. 2010, “Stress Among Charge Nurses: Tool Development and Stress Measurement”, Nursing Economics, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 151-158.
Darling, J.R. & Heller, V.L. 2011, “The Key for Effective Stress Management: Importance of Responsive Leadership in Organizational Development”, Organization Development Journal, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 9-26.
Mujtaba, B.G., Lara, A., King, C., Johnson, V. & Mahanna, T. 2010, “Stress at Work in a Slowing Economy”, Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 26-42.
Shortt, J.W., Capaldi, D.M., Kim, H.K. & Tiberio, S.S. 2013, “The Interplay Between Interpersonal Stress and Psychological Intimate Partner Violence Over Time for Young At-Risk Couples”, Journal of Youth and Adolescence, vol. 42, no. 4, pp. 619-32.
Stress-related and psychological disorders 2014, Web.
Walinga, J. & Rowe, W. 2013, “Transforming stress in complex work environments”, International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 66-88.