Did you know that there is good stress and bad stress? Good stress is called “eustress” and bad stress is called “distress”.
Eustress vs Distress
Eustress is the type of stress you feel when you are excited. It means the situation is important to you.
Some examples of eustress are:
- Receiving a promotion or raise at work.
- Starting a new job.
- Before a performance or athletic competition.
- Marriage.
- Buying a home.
- Having a child.
- Moving.
- Taking a vacation.
- Learning a new hobby.
- Holiday seasons.
Distress is what most of us think about when we talk about stress. It’s that overwhelming, anxiety-inducing, nerve-wracking form of stress that can leave you feeling unable to function, focus, complete tasks, or face challenges.
Some examples of distress are:
- Experiencing relationship strain
- Ending a relationship (either platonic or romantic)
- Death of a friend, loved one, or spouse
- Abuse or neglect
- Working a high-pressure job with never-ending demand
- Unaddressed mental or physical health conditions
- Divorce
- Financial difficulty
- Illness or hospitalization
- An unhealthy pursuit of money
The way you think about stress matters. One expert said that embracing stress is more important than reducing stress, because how we think about stress influences whether we respond in healthy or unhealthy ways.
One article I read says this about stress: “The three most protective beliefs about stress are: 1) to view your body’s stress response as helpful, not debilitating – for example, to view stress as energy you can use; 2) to view yourself as able to handle, and even learn and grow from, the stress in your life; and 3) to view stress as something that everyone deals with, and not something that proves how uniquely screwed up you or your life is.
The emerging science on stress mindsets shows that it is possible to change all of these attitudes, even if we are used to thinking of stress as harmful. For example, when you feel your heart pounding from anxiety, you think about how your body is trying to give you the energy you need to rise to the challenge. More importantly, changing any one of these attitudes can help you thrive in the face of ordinary stress as well as chronic or even traumatic stress.”
You can read the full article here: https://news.stanford.edu/2015/05/07/stress-embrace-mcgonigal-050715/
If you are curious how life coaching helps with the way you think about and handle stress, click the button in the lower right corner and schedule a FREE no pressure, no obligation call with me!