Stress has been around from the beginning of time and it will be here till the end. Stress and challenges have brought about greats like Martin Luther King, Marcus Garvey and Malcolm X. Eustress is needed in our lives to make this world exciting and fulfilling. On the other hand, distress can be unhealthy and sometimes lethal. The American Association statistics show that 50% of all diseases are preventable, if people could learn to handle the emotional and physical stress in their lives. A century ago, infectious diseases claimed the lives of thousands around the world and this was mainly caused by poor environmental conditions. Today, the leading cause of death in America is chronic diseases and this is primarily based on a person's lifestyle. In this paper I will briefly discuss the history of stress and the different causes of stress. I will also mention several stress management techniques.

According to the Webster's dictionary, stress is a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension. Stress is the tension our bodies experience as we adjust to our continually changing environment. The stress that I am referring to is negative st

Long-term stress deals with the sustained levels of excessive stress. There are four major stages we go through before we breakdown. In the first stage, we receive a new challenge and we attack the challenge with an enormous amount of energy. An example of this would be your boss giving you a new assignment. The new assignment is difficult, but you gladly take it with a positive attitude. The second stage you begin to get tired and this may affect your ability to work effectively. You must meet the deadlines that your boss gave you, so you begin to feel angry and frustrated when things don't go as planned. In the third stage the stress continues to grow and you begin to think that the goal is unattainable and giving up becomes an option. In the final stage the stress becomes overwhelming and we eventually breakdown. (Roth, 1996)

For more severe stress you should consider using the deep breathing technique. Most people think they breath deeply already, but the truth is they do not due to poor posture, tight clothes, smoke and other harmful chemicals. Every time we become stressed, our body naturally tenses up and this causes us to breath faster. As a result of this your body does not get the oxygen it needs, so you may experience headaches and fatigue. To lower your heart rate and blood pressure here a few simple steps that you can take. (Roth, 1996)

(You can start with any muscle group)

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Approximate Word count = 2182
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)