Stages of Reaction to Stress
• The alarm reaction stage
• Resistance stage
• Exhaustion stage
Alarm stage
• There is an alarm reaction when a person perceives he is being attacked by a stressor. There is a short term burst of stress hormone (adrenaline) which produces a temporary high feeling and produces energy. It makes one excited and able to function well with little sleep.
• Blood is diverted from the skin and digestive system to the muscles and brain putting the body in a ready to fight or flee mode (Even the blood vessels constrict so that you will lose little blood in case you are injured while fleeing).
• If there is no intervention and the release of adrenaline into the body is prolonged, it will result in ill-health.
• Any cause of alarm should be dealt with. You should not be deceived that all is well because you feel high and energised. Find a solution to the cause.
Resistance stage
• A person is seeking to adapt to an on-going negative situation rather than fight or flee.
• The brain loses its ability to control cortisol leading to unnecessary production of cortisol. Under normal condition high level of cortisol is secreted between 6 am and 8 am while the lowest levels occur around mid-night. However when the body is under prolonged stress, the levels remain high throughout the day and in some situation throughout the night as well. This leads to inability to sleep and other sleep disturbances.
• The brain produces less ‘youth hormone’ which enhances memory and has other anti-ageing effects; therefore aging is accelerated in people who are continuously stressed
Exhaustion stage
• The body begins to break down and there is increased risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and cancer among others.