Stress A Fine Line

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             Breast cancer, has received a lot of attention as of late. Studies have shown that an alarming number of women with breast cancer had experienced some sort of traumatic life experience or loss several years before their diagnosis (Farrington). Moreover, chronic stress can lead to high blood pressure, depression, memory loss and asthma. Stress also becomes harmful when people use alcohol, tobacco, or drugs to try to relieve their stress. Unfortunately, instead of relieving the stress and returning the body to a relaxed state, these substances tend to keep the body in a stressed state and cause more problems.
             Stress is a state of tension that is created when a person responds to the demands and pressures that come from work, family and other external sources, as well as those that are internally generated from self-imposed demands, obligations and self-criticism. Numerous elements trigger stress. First, frustration may be a trigger. Many different events will cause frustration. Frustration occurs from something blocking our achievement of certain goals or needs. For example, among life's ordinary frustrations are waiting in lines, traffic, a sense of failure or inadequacy, bad relationships, deaths, and loneliness. In addition, self-defeating thoughts are a way in which people almost deliberately block attainment of their needs. If in our heads, say, we have a preconceived notion that we are incapable of obtaining something desirable or being loved, we may create a self-fulfilling prophecy. By feeling unlovable we make ourselves unlovable. Similarly, major life changes, whether positive or negative, can lead to very stressful situations. In our society, many people fall into a rut of everyday life and fear change to their daily routines. When any kind of change occurs, for example, it can be very traumatic. Starting a new career or getting a new job, for example, is a major change that can produce stress.