Last update: January 10, 2015
Stress is more present today than ever, but what causes it? Why are there more cases of stress today? The accelerated pace of life in which we are immersed is the main reason, combined with lack of economic security that a large part of the population is suffering from the crisis, which therefore it diminishes our chances of enjoying the little free time we have left. Very often we realize that we are stressed, but we do not understand why: usually it is not a single thing, but a set of problems. What Causes Stress? Below we analyze the 7 main reasons.
The 7 causes of stress:
1. Business reasons
The stressful work we have to undergo during this time means that we are often more nervous than normal. Haste, excess of responsibility, bad relationships with the boss and colleagues. In many cases the staff has been excessively reduced, and this causes employees to have more work to do and also greater psychological pressure. Often we are afraid to say no to job requests that go beyond what our responsibilities should be, because refusing could cause a layoff and, given the bad times we are going through, everyone is afraid of being unemployed. To decrease work stress, it would be recommended take advantage of the free time we have available. Think about it: what are the things you love the most to do? What makes you happy? Even if you have little free time, keep on practice your hobbies and especially take care of yourself with good nutrition and get enough sleep.
2. Toxic people
The environment we live in most of the time greatly affects our stress. Le toxic people they steal our energy and positivity. To know if there are people around you who harm you, you simply have to listen to your emotions. If you feel anger, stress, pain and, in summary, se you experience negative feelings, it means that you are surrounded by toxic people. Healthy people are those who manage to make you feel comfortable and who bring out your positive emotions; they are like a ray of light that enhances our emotions. The ideal way to ensure that a negative environment does not cause us stress would be to spend as little time as possible with these types of people. But since it is often not possible, because it could be some of our family members or colleagues with whom we have to stay for several hours, it is good to enjoy the free time we have at our disposal making the most of it. In this way we will rebalance the balance of negativity to which we have been exposed.
3. Negative thoughts
Some people can get stressed out on their own, for no really important reasons. If the mind focuses on everything negative in our life, we will easily become stressed. It is necessary concentration thoughts about pleasant things and not letting pessimism invade us. Tolerance must be cultivated, perfection aside, the anxiety of reaching certain goals, haste. All this only serves to paralyze us. We did not come into the world to always be perfect and efficient, but to be happy. And as you have heard countless times, the important thing is not the destination, but the journey. Even if it seems a utopia it is very true, we must enjoy the journey. It is good to be careful and look around, instead of just looking into the future. There is a ground place where you can enjoy life, and it is here and now, in the present. If you let your mind travel to the past or the future too often, you will be stressed out for reasons that are not real, which are created by your own thoughts.
4. Major losses
When a loved one, a friend or a person we were close to passes away, we go through one of the most stressful situations there is. In many cases there may be a need for professional help. These are irreversible changes in our life, very painful. We will go through a series of stages of mourning in which the pain will subside slowly, until we are able to go on normally.
5. Love and love sickness
Love has been shown to be one of the things that can bring us the most happiness. However, when the relationship is not healthy, it can also harm us. Having a conflict situation within the couple is very stressful. Cases of emotional dependence, people who have low self-esteem and endure being treated badly, fear of losing the other, etc. The saying "better alone than badly accompanied"Unfortunately it is not followed by many people, who are subjected to a level of stress that is not very recommendable. Even non-committed people who fall in love with someone who doesn't love them back can get used to this situation and continue to suffer unnecessarily for someone who won't make them happy. All these wrong attitudes undermine our personal well-being and cause us to build up stress.
6. Acoustic stress
This is a subject that is rarely talked about, but being subjected to a too noisy environment for many hours can cause stress, especially if we are forced to suffer from this noise pollution every day. To counter it, we should be able to dedicate time every day to ourselves, to be alone, listening to soothing music at a low volume, practicing yoga or other relaxation techniques.
7. Loneliness
We live in the age of telecommunications, yet there is more loneliness than ever. Human relations have deteriorated. Each time it seems more natural to decrease the actual contact and replace it with a remote contact through the computer or other electronic devices. Years ago people had more face-to-face contact. We need to try to spend more time in direct contact with others and use technology less.
Rebalance the balance
Stress builds up within us. If we don't try to stop it and rebalance it, we will end up bursting and causing it to develop into a form of anxiety or another psychosomatic illness. How to find the balance? The first thing is to look for the answer to the question: what causes us stress? Once we understand the cause, we can begin to take things another way. We have to enjoy the free time we have and have fun. Each person has a different way of doing it, there is no universal rule, look for your own way of enjoying yourself. If you don't get distracted for too long, you will let the negativity gain ground and your emotions will get worse. For example, imagine a person who has to work 12 hours in an unhealthy environment; if once she gets out of work she feels so negative that she doesn't do anything else because she doesn't feel like it, in the end that stress will cost her dearly. If she decides that that unsatisfactory job won't stop her from enjoying life, she'll be fine. We need a reason to help us cope with the negative in our life. Look for your reason. Practice your hobbies, do something you like, have fun, keep in touch with good and healthy people, have fun, take care of those who love you and support you.
The more positive things there are in your life, the more reasons you will have to endure even the less good moments.
Image courtesy of Amy McTigue, net_efekt, Bernard Goldbach
