Physiological stress. Functional states of the body. Stress, its physiological significance. Methods for dealing with stress

In the course of research, experts found that stress occurs in the body as a result of exposure to stress factors or stressors. In this case, stressors can be both external and internal. We will get to know them more closely in the article.

Physiology of stress

As already mentioned, the physiology of the stress process can be explained by:

external stressors (cold, heat, wind);
internal stressors (hunger, pain, emotions, thirst).

Exposure to a stressor on the body leads to the emergence of a stress response and triggers the stress process itself. The very scheme of stress development is as follows: anxiety-adaptation-exhaustion.

The first reaction that accompanies the physiology of stress is a state of anxiety. Here, the autonomic nervous system is directly involved in the process, which a person is not able to control on his own. It immediately reacts to all changes in the environment, and the degree of change in its work depends on the strength of the resulting reaction. It is thanks to the influence of the autonomic nervous system that our body is able to adapt to external factors. So, in the dark the pupils dilate, and in bright light the pupils constrict, the hand withdraws from the hot surface, and so on.

Alarm reaction

Separately, we should consider the anxiety reaction, in which a person receives information about a change in the autonomic system and begins to prepare resources that would allow him to respond appropriately to an external stimulus.

The physiology of stress is structured in such a way that any reaction, be it negative or positive, requires energy. Therefore, the autonomic system triggers a reaction to increase metabolism, which increases the supply of oxygen to the brain and other vital organs. This is where the work of the nervous system ends. In order to convey information to the body about the changes that have occurred and make preliminary preparations, the autonomic system requires a split second.

The physiology of stress also includes effects on the endocrine system, which allows hormones to regulate processes in the body. In the future, it is this system that interacts with the body. The changes that have occurred are maintained due to the release of the hormone adrenaline.

The physiology of stress includes, in addition to the anxiety reaction, a number of other capabilities of the body. The most important among them are the adaptation reaction and the exhaustion reaction. Therefore, attention should also be paid to them in order to better understand the patterns of stress processes.

You will need:

What is the characteristic of the disorder?

A person cannot control everything that happens around him. Stressful environments surround us everywhere. To avoid negativity, you just need to lie in bed for days and be completely inactive. There is a phrase in psychology: “All information is neutral, and the person himself chooses to perceive it as positive or negative.”

The physiology of stress is such that it can occur in both a child and an elderly person. Moreover, children do not react so sharply to all provoking stimuli.

During physiological stress, the body receives a signal of physical discomfort. And no matter what the stress factor is (cold or heat, blow or scream), the entire psychological and physical system is mobilized and tense.

Still don’t understand what kind of stress this is? Here are a couple of illustrative examples:

If you suddenly put your hand into very cold water;
you get permanent makeup done;
In hot weather, go into the refrigerator compartment.

We are talking about the physiology of stress...

Its types

Physiological stress, depending on the nature of its occurrence, is divided into:

Chemical

It appears as a result of disruption of chemical processes in the body (lack of air, excessive room humidity, environmental gas pollution, etc.).

Biological

It is a consequence of disease.

Physical

Occurs in professional athletes due to heavy loads.

Mechanical

Associated with damage to the body (trauma, surgery, bruise of the limbs, etc.).

Main causes

Sudden temperature changes;
Loud noise;
Strong smell;
Strong impact, fall or other mechanical damage;
Heat or cold;
High humidity;
Drinking fast.

In short, factors that provoke physiological stress include everything that disturbs inner peace and balance.

The causes of this type of stress also include constant strict diets. When an acute period of food restriction begins, the body gets stressed, “eats” its fat, and after a while it suffers

dit adaptation. As a result, the weight stops, and many unpleasant gastrointestinal diseases appear.

Symptoms

Muscle tension;
Acute and unexpected reaction to an irritating factor;
Increased sweating;
Blood pressure surges;
Lack of hunger;
Headache;
Convulsions;
Secondary memory loss;
Sleep disturbance.

Meaning for humans

Physiological irritation that occurs in every person also has a positive effect. People have learned to live and cope with them. This means that the body adapts and over time it becomes possible to withstand not only physiological stress, but also its other types.

Consequences

Doctors and scientific literature tend to believe that if physiological stress is rare, then it will not bring any negative consequences. If, for example, you have gone on a long-term exhausting diet, you must understand that the body does not receive enough beneficial microelements, and this harms the immune system and health in general.

Long-term signs of physiological stress give rise to a destructive process: they disrupt the functioning of the cardiovascular and endocrine systems, aggravate chronic diseases, and the menstrual cycle also fails in women.

Physiological diseases can develop into mental illnesses over time, because they are closely related and dependent on each other.

Treatment of stress

There is no single method for treating this disorder. Most psychologists consider such treatment unnecessary. But still, if you often observe yourself overly violent reactions to external factors, then it is still worth considering methods that do not have side effects:

Address the cause of physiological distress.
Take a deep breath and exhale.

This simple breathing exercise will relieve nervous tension.

Instead of strict diets, it is better to switch to proper balanced nutrition.

And the body will be comfortable, and you will be pleased with the decreasing weight.

Meditation is performed to balance the psyche and speed up stress relief.

During this exercise, you should take a comfortable position, close your eyes and focus on positive thoughts.

You can dream, remember pleasant moments, or draw a picture of the future in your mind. This method will help you relax.

Relaxation perfectly relieves muscle and emotional tension.

It is especially useful to do when a person is nervous. To do this, lie on the floor or bed, relax your legs and arms and close your eyes. Focus on your breathing. Breathe deeply and slowly. Think only about your body, feel it from your heel to your toe. Tighten each leg alternately for 3-4 seconds and relax. Then you can tense your whole body for a few seconds and relax.

At the end of relaxation, inhale deeply, exhale and slowly open your eyes. There is no need to get up suddenly, sit down smoothly, then get up and try to remain in that relaxed state.

You can color anti-stress coloring books. With us you can do this without leaving your computer.

Choose how you want to paint.

Sessions with a psychotherapist will help you respond correctly to irritable situations.
Particularly advanced stages of severe stress, when a person’s psycho-emotional state is not restored and tension does not go away, the doctor prescribes the use of herbal antidepressants (Valerian, Motherwort, Novopassit, Sedatifon, etc.).

Conclusion

Every person is an individual. And how he will react to the influence of external stimuli and behave during the adaptation syndrome is purely individual. Physiological stress is not that dangerous. The main thing is that everything should be in moderation. This statement comes in very handy here.

Stages of ontogeny

Ontogenesis is the individual development of an organism, starting from a single cell (zygote, formed by the fusion of an egg and a sperm) to an adult multicellular creature with many specialized tissues and organs. The need to combine these sublevels into one ontogenetic level is caused by two reasons. Firstly, the zygote - essentially an ordinary cell - already represents an organism, albeit at the unicellular stage of development. Secondly, in nature there are not only multicellular, but also unicellular organisms of both animal and plant properties - amoeba, ciliates, euglena, chlorella, etc. Bacteria - especially small and nuclear-free (prokaryotic) cells - are also independent organisms, although they live usually in colonies. So the concepts of “cell” and “organism” in certain cases coincide.

A very important conclusion follows from the above: cell is the smallest, that is elementary living system, since it has all the properties of a living organism, the properties of life as a phenomenon. A cell, like a multicellular organism, is capable of feeding, absorbing energy, synthesizing substances, moving, responding to stimuli, reproducing, adapting, etc.. This is facilitated by a fairly high degree of structural discreteness - the internal division of the cell into organelles, isolated compartments - especially pronounced in higher, eukaryotic cells.

Questions to reinforce the material:

1. What ecological groups are organisms divided into depending on the energy sources they use?

2. What mechanisms exist for the transfer of substances in plant organisms?

3. How do small molecules transfer in animals and humans?

4. What is morphogenesis?

5. What growth zones do plants have?

6. Which plants exhibit secondary growth?

7. What are the stages of animal development?

8. What does gerontology study?

9. What are phytohormones, what do they serve?

Lecture 7. Plant resistance to adverse environmental factors

Purpose of the lecture: To provide knowledge about the mechanisms of plant resistance.

Plan:

1. Plant resistance to adverse environmental factors. Physiology of stress

2. Cold resistance and frost resistance of plants, hardening

3. Heat resistance, water stress, salt tolerance

4. Gas resistance, radio resistance

Unfavorable environmental factors are called stressors, and the body’s reaction to deviations from the norm is called stress (tension). Plants are characterized by three phases of stress: 1) primary stress reaction, 2) adaptation, 3) exhaustion. The effect of a stressor depends on the magnitude of the damaging factor, the duration of its effect and the resistance of the plant. Plant resistance to stressors also depends on the phase of ontogenesis. Plants that are in a state of dormancy are the most resistant. Plants are most sensitive when they are young.

The primary nonspecific processes occurring in plant cells under the influence of any stressors include the following:

1. Increased membrane permeability, depolarization of the membrane potential of the plasmalemma.

2. Entry of calcium ions into the cytoplasm from cell walls and intracellular organelles (vacuole, endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria).

3. Shift the pH of the cytoplasm to the acidic side.

4. Activation of the assembly of actin microfilaments of the cytoskeleton, resulting in increased viscosity and light scattering of the cytoplasm.

5. Increased oxygen absorption, accelerated consumption of ATP, development of free radical processes.

6. Increasing the content of the amino acid proline, which can form aggregates that behave like hydrophilic colloids and contribute to the retention of water in the cell. Proline can bind to protein molecules, protecting them from denaturation.

7. Activation of the synthesis of stress proteins.

8. Strengthening the synthesis of ethylene and abscisic acid, inhibition of division and growth, absorption activity of cells and other physiological processes occurring under normal conditions.

In addition, stressors have a specific effect on cells. In low doses, repeated stress leads to hardening of the body, and hardening to one stressor helps to increase the body’s resistance and other damaging factors.

In 1925, Hans Selye introduced the concept of general adaptation syndrome. Selye explained each component of his definition as follows: General - because stress is caused by factors that, acting on different areas of the body, are ultimately capable of causing general systemic protection; Adaptive - because this phenomenon seems to be fixed, acquiring the character of a habit; Syndrome - because its individual manifestations are partially interdependent.

The entire stress syndrome (general adaptation syndrome) goes through three stages:

1. The inhibition phase, corresponding to the initial responses to the influence of a stressor, expressed in a violation of the structural and functional conditions of life. During this phase, the viability and stability of plants decreases, and the processes of catabolism prevail over anabolism. If the stress is too great, serious damage occurs. When the intensity of stress is moderate, a gradual restoration of metabolism is initiated.

2. The adaptation phase, during which the body adapts to the stressor.

3. If the adaptive potential of the body is insufficient to overcome the influence of the stressor, and the duration or intensity of the stress is too significant, the exhaustion phase begins. During this phase, the plant's viability gradually declines, leading to damage or even death, and the plants become more susceptible to pathogens and other stressors.

Currently, there is also a 4-stage:

4. If the stressor stops before the processes of cell death become dominant, a regeneration phase begins, during which new adaptive and compensatory mechanisms appear.

Thus, depending on the magnitude and duration of exposure to a stressor, adaptation mechanisms to these stress factors may be activated in organisms.

Adaptations are the emergence and development of certain, specific morphophysiological properties, the meaning of which for an organism is associated with certain general or particular conditions of its abiotic and biotic environment.

Adaptation, like the adaptive response, can be carried out at various levels:

1. at the cell level in the form of functional or morphological changes;

2. at the level of an organ or group of cells that have the same function;

3. at the level of the organism, both a morphological and functional whole, which is the totality of all physiological functions aimed at preserving vital functions and life itself.

4. at the population level;

5. at the species level;

6. at the level of biocenosis;

7. at the ecosphere level;

The concept of adaptation should not be considered as applicable only to an individual organism; adaptation is the process of maintaining the entire ecosphere in a relatively stable state, i.e. its homeostasis and individual organisms are only links in this mechanism

At the organismal level, all cellular mechanisms of adaptation are preserved and supplemented with new ones, reflecting the interaction of organs in the whole plant. First of all, these are competitive relationships for physiologically active substances and food. This allows plants, under extreme conditions, to form only such a minimum of generative organs that they are able to provide with the necessary substances for maturation. Under unfavorable conditions, the processes of aging and falling of the lower leaves are accelerated, and the hydrolysis products of their organic compounds are used to nourish young leaves and form generative organs. Plants are able to replace damaged or lost organs through regeneration and growth of axillary buds. Intercellular regulatory systems (hormonal, trophic and electrophysiological) are involved in all these processes of correlative growth.

Under conditions of prolonged and severe stress, unstable plants die first. They are eliminated from the population, and the seed offspring form more resistant plants. As a result, the overall level of resistance in the population increases. Thus, selection is activated at the population level, leading to the emergence of more adapted organisms and new species.

Long-term studies have obtained data on the response of plants to drought, salinity, high and low temperatures. The results of studies of the nature of changes under the influence of these stresses of a large number of physiological, biochemical, biophysical, morphological-anatomical and ultrastructural parameters in plant species and varieties different in stress resistance are summarized in Table 1. The presence of such uniformity of the final effect when the plant is exposed to qualitatively different stress factors is a consequence of the multivariate ways of implementing the development program of the plant organism. A characteristic feature of plant adaptation, for example, to drought and salinity is a sharp increase in their osmotic potential, but during drought due to an increase in the concentration of organic compounds in the cells, and during salinity - through the accumulation of salt ions from the external environment.

The rhythm of life of a modern person accelerates every year. Today, a woman is not only a mother and homemaker, but also a businesswoman, athlete, Komsomol member and simply a beauty. Men are also not limited to mammoth prey - they are obliged to help around the house, raise children, engage in sports, their development, business, and so on. With increasing responsibilities, many began to experience obsessive stress. And therefore, today stress is not the privilege of suspicious young ladies, but a serious psychological and physiological diagnosis.

Stress haunts almost every modern person

What is physiological stress

Physiological stress is the reaction of the human body to any negative external stimuli (stressors). The function of stress is the mobilization experienced by the body experiencing stress. And in small quantities, this state is really useful - a person begins to think and act more actively. However, if more stressful situations arise, then the body’s forces devoted to solving problems are simply depleted. Moreover, this applies to both psychological resources and physiological ones.

Scientists around the world have long recognized the power of stress on the body. Many studies have been conducted, a huge number of articles and books have been written on psychophysiology, and all of them are devoted to one phenomenon - the physiology of stress. It would seem that this process has been studied far and wide. But the psychophysiological mechanisms of its occurrence, stages of development and consequences of the influence of stressors on the psyche and health of a person are so complex that they are unique for almost everyone. Although there are common symptoms.

The structure of the development of physiological stress

Any stressful condition, when it occurs, goes through three stages: anxiety, adaptation, exhaustion. These processes are physiological mechanisms of stress.

The next stage is longer. This reaction already occurs with the participation of the brain, the amount of glucose in the blood increases, energy production increases, and much more.

There are two possible options for completing this stage - either the body adapts to new realities, or the resources will come to an end, and the third stage will begin - the period of exhaustion. This phase of stress development is what causes all the unpleasant changes. Strength is running low, resistance is reduced, and the physical consequences of stress arise. If the irritant is not eliminated at this stage, death is possible.

Stress-related reactions occur in the human brain

Causes of stress

The cause of stress (stressor) can be anything, any psychological or other changes. They are based on completely different features, components and reactions. Some people have difficulty going through problems in their personal lives, while others are killed by the loss of something they need.

Stressors are divided into external and internal. External ones include the death of a loved one, loss of a job, etc. Internal ones include low self-esteem, deep and constant soul-searching, and the discrepancy between ideals and reality.

If these reasons occur relatively rarely, then most people experience them easily. Stress activates hidden forces, so a person is able to cope even with very serious difficulties. The main and common cause of the negative consequences of stress is the constant occurrence of irritants.

Types of stress

Thanks to numerous research in the field of psychophysiology, two types of stressful conditions are distinguished - eustress and distress.

Eustress is positive. It triggers the changes in the body necessary to eliminate the stimulus, increases mental and physical activity, and speeds up the reaction. When you need to run a marathon, you get a “second wind”. Or when preparing a report, an employee is able to work longer hours and much more efficiently. It should be remembered that the resources spent on such a “marathon” must be restored, otherwise there is a high risk of the second type of stress.

Distress is negative. It appears when the body is no longer able to fight external stimuli (chronic lack of sleep or endless problems in the family, as if rotating on its own axis, conflicts at work).

This is exactly the state we mean when we say we are “under stress.” It is because of this that many people take antidepressants, alcohol, or seek help from specialists. Usually, when talking about the occurrence of stress or depression, this is what they mean.

Symptoms

To avoid the negative effects of stress on your body, both psychologically and physically, you should be attentive to yourself and your loved ones. The first symptoms of an inability to cope with difficulties on your own include:

constant fatigue, irritability even for minor reasons;
inability to respond adequately to people and events;
poor sleep;
insensitivity to positive events in life, lack of keen interest in what is happening;
the inability to “forget” about your problems for a while and relax;
low activity.

If someone begins to notice similar manifestations of stress in themselves or their loved ones, they should be wary and be sure to understand the reasons, and then eliminate them as much as possible and restore strength. The consequences of undetected signs of stress in time can be serious, because irreversible processes occur in the body.

If a sharply negative attitude arises towards one’s own work or boss, many take it for granted; there is no escape from it, because having an income is vital. Irritation and fatigue gradually accumulate. As a result, health may deteriorate, family relationships may deteriorate or even collapse. But all you had to do was look for a new field of activity.

Poor sleep is a symptom of stress

Methods for dealing with stress

The most effective method for dealing with stress is sound, healthy sleep, so you need to carefully prepare for this process. There are a lot of methods, techniques and recommendations for improving the quality of sleep: from ventilating the room to falling asleep in one position. Of course, this is the first and simplest thing you can do.

Some people resort to alcohol, drugs, gambling and much more to cope with stress. At the initial stage, such “antidepressants” can indeed alleviate the condition a little, but their effect is very short-lived. However, they are the ones who are able to turn a person around his own axis 180 degrees and from a stressful state lead to a state of painful dependence, which is also incredibly difficult to get rid of.

The main thing is balance and the obligatory desire to soberly assess your life and your capabilities.

Most problems can be solved fairly quickly with just a little patience. This will stop the development of stress, and life will return to normal.

And does he realize what happens to the body during this process? After all, every person is sure that they have experienced such a problem.

Body reaction

The human body responds to the influence of environmental factors with a standard nonspecific reaction of neurohumoral systems. There is damage and a change in balance in the body, which is otherwise called “hemostasis,” caused by the impact of a negative factor on the body. Indeed, most of the irritants, as they are also called, stressors or stress factors, affect the body every day. For example, such as cold, heat, loud alarm sound in the morning. The alarm clock is heard - the eyes are opened, that is, exposure to a stressor triggers a chain of stress reactions, namely, it begins the process.

Causes

Perhaps you are a hermit and you will not experience negative reasons. However, no one can avoid physiological reasons. Physiological stress is everywhere. Nature itself is the reason for them: noise, vibration, temperature fluctuations, hunger due to eternal diets, or perhaps torment that you do not adhere to these diets, but by the way, this is a psychological reason. But, as you know, everything in nature is interconnected.

Conventionally, physiological stress for reasons of impact can be divided into 4 main groups:

Chemical stress. Occurs under the influence of chemicals, caused by an increase in the level of carbon monoxide in the inhaled air, etc.
Stress is biological. Occurs due to diseases.
Physical stress. It is at the limit of the body, sometimes debilitating, often excessive.
Mechanical stress. Occurs when the integrity of the body is damaged (surgery, trauma).

Stress affects the human body in different ways, and according to this principle they are divided into:

Distress. Conventionally described as unfavorable stress, which is not a completely fair definition, since, in turn, distress is divided into:
- harmful (exhaustive training, hypothermia, overheating);
- mobilizing (competitions, competitions, dousing with cold water).
. This is positive stress caused by experiencing pleasant events.

Development process

Let's look at the physiological basis of stress and what underlies it. The pattern of development of physiological stress is quite simple:

adaptation
exhaustion.

What is the scenario for the development of physiological manifestations of a situation that the human brain recognizes as dangerous? In other words, the first domino fell, the cerebral cortex perceived a signal from the environment about a dangerous situation, and this is what happens next:

From the cerebral cortex, signals about a dangerous situation rush to the hypothalamus. This is a small but extremely important area of the brain, or more precisely, the medulla oblongata, which contains a large number of clusters of cells, being the highest control center of the endocrine and autonomic nervous system.
Then some changes occur in the functioning of the autonomic nervous system. First, the activity of the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system increases, which manifests itself as physiological symptoms of stress:
- tachycardia, or increased heart rate;
- the release of the hormone adrenaline into the bloodstream, if a person is experiencing, or norepinephrine, if experiencing;
- muscle contraction becomes more intense and muscle tension occurs;
- Due to spasm of peripheral vessels, the skin becomes pale in color, and cold sweat may appear.
If the physiological continues its influence, then when the limit of adaptive energy is reduced, with a “weak” type of higher nervous activity, the parasympathetic parts of the autonomic nervous system are activated, which can manifest as the following physiological symptoms: general weakness, fatigue, decreased blood pressure, decreased muscle tone, gastrointestinal tract disorder.
Activation of hormonal mechanisms, for the discovery of which Hans Selye was awarded the Nobel Prize. So-called anti-stress hormones are produced by activating the adrenal cortex. This reaction, like the previous one, is triggered by the hypothalamus, but is significantly different. Glucocorticoids enhance all metabolic processes of the body, the following physiological symptoms appear: under stress, the level of glucose in the blood increases, inflammatory processes are suppressed, the body's sensitivity to pain decreases - in general, the body adapts faster and better to the demands of the environment.

These three stages constitute the first link of the development scheme. The body is tasked with adapting or overcoming this problem.

Neurohumoral reactions. Further events depend on how quickly the body manages to cope with the problem. If the stress factor continues to affect the physiology of the body, then the second stage begins - adaptation, characterized by the fact that compensation for damage from the impact occurs. This is what an athlete experiences in the middle of a long distance, the so-called “second wind”. But sooner or later the adaptation energy becomes depleted; it is impossible to remain in a state of tension indefinitely. And if the stressor continues to affect the body, physiological stress is replaced by pathological stress. In other words, the person gets sick.

Physiological signs

They affect almost all human organ systems: gastrointestinal, respiratory, cardiovascular and are manifested by a number of signs related to these systems. Among them, the cardiovascular system is the most indicative and has increased sensitivity, which is why special attention is paid to changes in it. Objective signs of change, so-called stress symptoms, which are recorded during the study of the problem:

tachycardia, increased heart rate or change in regularity;
as a rule, an increase in blood pressure, but a decrease is also possible;
difficulty breathing;
discomfort in the gastrointestinal tract.

Also common, but indirect symptoms of physiological stress: refusal to eat, sleep disturbances, frequent headaches, allergic rash, decreased libido.