Today is January 16 and the Navigate the Chaos question to consider is “How often do you benefit from stress?"
Researchers and psychologists believe that individuals can learn to identify and manage reactions to stress.
Stanford University health psychologist Kelly McGonigal wrote The Upside of Stress: Why Stress is Good for You, and How to Get Good at It and declared that people can develop healthier outlooks as well as improve performance on cognitive tests, at work, and in competition.
Stress can either be beneficial (adaptive) or harmful (threatening) according to the latest research.
With beneficial or adaptive stress, the sympathetic nervous system and the hypothalamus, pituitary, and adrenal glands pump stress hormones, adrenaline, and cortisol, into the bloodstream while heartbeat and breathing speed up, and muscles tense.
According to researcher Wendy Mendes people experiencing beneficial stress feel pumped, their blood vessels dilate, and have an increase in blood flow to help the brain, muscles, and limbs meet a challenge.
The body, however, tends to respond differently under harmful or threatening stress. Christopher Edwards, director of the behavioral chronic pain management program at Duke University Medical Center, suggests that the blood vessels constrict, and “you may feel a little dizzy as your blood pressure rises.”
“Stress is a very healthy thing, because it gives you the energy you need to live life,” says Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, and author of Real Cause, Real Cure. “Without it, you wouldn’t have the energy you need to take action.”
One example of how stress gave someone the energy to live is Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III.
Sully is an American retired airline captain who demonstrated how to handle beneficial stress when he successfully executed an emergency water landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River off Manhattan, New York City, on January 15, 2009.
His aircraft was disabled by striking a flock of Canada geese during its climb out from LaGuardia Airport.
All 155 people aboard the aircraft survived and there were no personal injuries. Sully managed his stress to save lives.
William James noted “The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.”
American biathlete Clare Egan uses multiple techniques to manage the stress of skiing and target shooting. In a February 2018 New York Times article she highlighted one strategy is “compete against yourself and nobody else.”
Egan noted “You have to let go of how everyone else is doing, and focus on your own work. If you can do that you’re going to have a performance you can be proud of, whether it’s giving a presentation at work or a piano recital or biathlon.”
Other strategies include being prepared, exhaling slowly, being mindful and focusing on the task and not the results. Egan said it is important to become familiar with the route before the event so there are no surprises.
Controlling her breathing allows her to remain calm even if her heart rate increases. Being mindful requires her to pay attention to the challenges around her in the moment instead of focusing on distractions.
And focusing on the task instead of the results reminds her to do what she has done countless times in practice over the years.
Are you choosing adaptive or beneficial stress over harmful or threatening stress?
As you go about your day, consider asking yourself how often do you manage or benefits from stress?