When you perceive something as a threat to you, your body activates part of your autonomic nervous system called the sympathetic nervous system which sends hormones through your body. These hormones cause various changes that you can notice – all of these changes are called the fight or flight response.
Stress can be good (known as eustress) or bad (distress). Eustress often comes from events or situations that are challenging, like going to college, getting a new job, or a new baby, but that ultimately lead to growth and success. Distress is caused by things like losing a loved one, losing a job, breaking up with a partner, and other difficult situations. Stress from these events can lead to negative health outcomes.
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Stress can affect how you feel, physically and emotionally.
There are different kinds of stress: acute, which happens quickly and suddenly, and chronic, which is prolonged or continuous. While acute stress usually resolves quickly, frequent episodes of acute stress can lead to negative health effects. Chronic stress has been linked with chronic health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and so on.
During COVID-19, experiences of stress have been very common. Here are some data from the American Psychological Association Stress in America survey – https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2021/infographics-january.
