Stress is a state of mental or physical tension caused by factors that disrupt equilibrium. It has been linked to various health problems. Life changes, both major and minor, can be stressful. Holmes and Rahe developed a scale to measure the impact of life changes, finding that even small changes can have significant effects. Characteristics of stressors like significance, duration, cumulative effect, and approaching deadlines impact how stressful a person perceives a situation to be. Their perception is also influenced by their self-concept and emotional needs.

2. Stress is a state of bodily or mental
tension resulting from factors that tend
to alter an existent equilibrium. Stress is
an unavoidable effect of living and is an
especially complex phenomenon in
modern technological society. It has
been linked to coronary heart
disease, psychosomatic disorders, and
various other mental and physical
problems.

3. Conflict
Frustration
Change
Pressure

4. life changes are noticeable alterations in
one's living circumstances that require
adjustment.
Holmes & Rahe (1967) - developed the
Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)
to measure life changes. They found
that, after interviewing thousands of
people, while BIG changes like death of a
loved one are very stressful, small life
changes have tremendous effects.

5. EVENT SCALE OF IMPACT
Death of Spouse 100
Divorce 73
Marital Separation 65
Jail Term 63
Death of Close Family 63
Member
Personal Injury/ Illness 53
Marriage 50
Fired at Work 47
Retirement 45
Change in Health of Family 44
Member
Pregnancy 40
Sex Difficulties 39

6. EVENT SCALE OF IMPACT
Gain of New Family 39
Member
Change in Financial State 38
Death of Close Friend 37
Change to different line of 36
Work
Large Mortgage 31
Change in responsibilities 29
at work
Son/ Daughter leaving 29
home
Trouble with in-laws 29
Outstanding Personal 28
Achievement
Begin or End School 26

7. EVENT SCALE OF IMPACT
Change in living condition 25
Revision of Personal 24
Habits
Trouble with Boss 23
Change in Residence 20
Change in Sleeping Habits 16
Vacation 13
Minor Violations of the 11
Law

9. Anxiety
Depression
Panic Attacks
Feeling of Guilt
Angry Outburst
Increased Cynicism
Isolation/ Few Close Friends
Feeling Overwhelmed

10. Unable to feel Happy
Feeling of Hopelessness
Mood Swings
Irritability
Resentment
Feeling of Powerlessness
Low Self-Esteem
Low Self- Worth

11. Lack of Interest in Activities
Cognitive Effect of Stress
Effects of Stress in memory

12. It is now known that bottled up
emotions can lead to bodily symptoms
or bodily and mental symptoms that
arise from mental conflict or inner
stress.
Emotions such as
anger, rage, grief, anxiety from
unfulfilled deadlines, or fear of failure
can manifest themselves in the form of a
psychosomatic illness. For
example, suppression of anger has been
linked to breast cancer.

13. That is the mind/body involvement.
Our minds influence our bodies and
our bodies influence our minds.
It gets even more
complex, because many
psychological effects of stress
became conditioned, deeply
ingrained in our nervous systems.

14. Characteristics of the
Stressor
Person’s Perception of
the Stressor

15. Each event or situation has
certain characteristics that
determine the severity that the
stressor may or may not have
on us.
Severity was based on Holmes-
Rahe Scale.

16. Significance
How critical and important the
event is to the individual (deaths,
failing an exam, break-up with
boy/girlfriend), and how much change
will have to be dealt with. The greater
the significance and change, the
higher the impact of the stressor.

17. Time length
If a stressor is continued over a
long period of time, it will result in
higher stress levels. For example,
tiredness: insufficient sleep over an
extended period of time will result
in higher stress than that caused by
just one night of bad sleep.

18. Cumulative Effect
This is when stressors are built
up over a period of time without
appropriate mechanisms to reduce
or release the build-up. For
example, a long series of little
irritations and annoyances could
result in a massive blowout
between two people.

19. Multiplicity
A number of stressors at one
time will result in higher stress
levels. For example, a fight with
one’s parents, final exams around
the corner and loss of a loved one
will be experienced as much more
stressful than if each of these
events happened separately.

20. Approaching deadline
If a demand has been made a
few weeks or months in advance of
the deadline, the degree of stress
will increase as the due date
approaches.

21. Self-concept
This is based on various
theories of personality. One is
called the Theory of Interpersonal
Needs. It states that each person
has the following emotional needs:

22. The need to discover our unique
identity as well as to be included
because of this unique identity.
The need to have the power to
control or influence what we do
and what happens to us.