NUR 253 EXAM 2 STUDY GUIDE
● Physiological responses to stress and stress management
○ Everyone experiences stress at some point, IT IS IMPORTANT TO
UNDERSTAND THE PATIENTS SUPPORT SYSTEM
○ Severe stress is unhealthy, it weakens biological resistance to psychiatric
disorders.
○ The nurses role is to recognize how the stress affects your patient
■ Identify and intervene to reduce stress by:
● Promoting a healthy environment
● Facilitating successful coping
● Developing future coping mechanisms
● Early stress response
○ Stressors are the physiological or psychological stimuli that causes a stress
response
○ General adaptation syndrome:
■ Alarm stage: initial, brief, adaptive response (flight or fight) to the stressor.
● This stage is very intense and cannot be tolerated for long periods
of time
■ Resistance stage: occurs if the threat continues, sometimes called the
adaptation stage. Sustained and optimal resistance to the stressor
occurs.
■ exhaustion stage: occurs when attempts to resist the stressor prove futile.
At this point resources are depleted and the stress becomes chronic.
● Can lead to illnesses including anxiety, depression, sleep
disorders, heart disease, and weight gain
■ Bad stress vs. good stress
● eustress( GOOD): positive energy that motivates an individual and
results in feelings of happiness, hopefulness, and purposeful
movement.
○ Examples: vacation, birth of a baby, marriage, favorite
sport
● Distress (BAD): draining energy that results in anxiety, depression,
confusion, helplessness, hopelessness
○ Examples: death, divorce, financial overload
○ Mediators of the stress response
■ Physiological stressors: environmental conditions
● Example: trauma, heat/cold, infection, hemorrhage, pain, hunger
■ Psychological stressors: can be positive or negative
● Example: marriage, divorce, unemployment, retirement, terrorist
attack
Perception: the way we see things, or feel things. The perception of the
stress determines the emotional and psychological behaviors.
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, ● Things that can affect a persons perception: age, gender, history,
culture
■ Temperament
■ Social support
■ Culture
■ spirituality/religion
● Relaxation techniques
○ Biofeedback: involves using visual or auditory feedback to gain control over
involuntary bodily functions.
■ The goal is to make subtle changes to the body to result in the desired
effect
○ Deep breathing exercises
■ Relax, inhale through nose, hold for 2 seconds, slowly exhale through
mouth. Repeat 2-3 times
○ Guided imagery
■ People are taught to focus on pleasant images to replace negative or
stressful feelings.
○ Meditation
○ Physical exercise
■ Walking, running, swimming, yoga
○ Cognitive reframing
■ Changes an individual's perception of stress by reassessing a situation
and replacing irrational beliefs. From “ I’ll never” to “ I should have”.
○ Journaling
○ Humour
● Effects of stress on the body:
○ headache, anxiety, depression, backaches, insomnia, ED, decreased libdo,
increased/decreased appetite, increased BP HR and Blood glucose
● Crisis and disaster
○ What is a crisis?
■ crisis : an event that will or may lead to an unstable and dangerous
situation affecting an individual, group, or society
■ Crisis intervention: a directive, time limited, and goal directed strategy
designed to assist those experiencing a crisis
■ Perception of threat: a person’s coping abilities. Perspective, culture and
past experiences can affect this
■ Support systems
■ Coping mechanisms: can be adaptive (healthy) or maladaptive
(unhealthy)
● Adaptive: exercise, reading, journaling
Downloaded by Josephine Kimani ()
● Physiological responses to stress and stress management
○ Everyone experiences stress at some point, IT IS IMPORTANT TO
UNDERSTAND THE PATIENTS SUPPORT SYSTEM
○ Severe stress is unhealthy, it weakens biological resistance to psychiatric
disorders.
○ The nurses role is to recognize how the stress affects your patient
■ Identify and intervene to reduce stress by:
● Promoting a healthy environment
● Facilitating successful coping
● Developing future coping mechanisms
● Early stress response
○ Stressors are the physiological or psychological stimuli that causes a stress
response
○ General adaptation syndrome:
■ Alarm stage: initial, brief, adaptive response (flight or fight) to the stressor.
● This stage is very intense and cannot be tolerated for long periods
of time
■ Resistance stage: occurs if the threat continues, sometimes called the
adaptation stage. Sustained and optimal resistance to the stressor
occurs.
■ exhaustion stage: occurs when attempts to resist the stressor prove futile.
At this point resources are depleted and the stress becomes chronic.
● Can lead to illnesses including anxiety, depression, sleep
disorders, heart disease, and weight gain
■ Bad stress vs. good stress
● eustress( GOOD): positive energy that motivates an individual and
results in feelings of happiness, hopefulness, and purposeful
movement.
○ Examples: vacation, birth of a baby, marriage, favorite
sport
● Distress (BAD): draining energy that results in anxiety, depression,
confusion, helplessness, hopelessness
○ Examples: death, divorce, financial overload
○ Mediators of the stress response
■ Physiological stressors: environmental conditions
● Example: trauma, heat/cold, infection, hemorrhage, pain, hunger
■ Psychological stressors: can be positive or negative
● Example: marriage, divorce, unemployment, retirement, terrorist
attack
Perception: the way we see things, or feel things. The perception of the
stress determines the emotional and psychological behaviors.
Downloaded by Josephine Kimani ()
, ● Things that can affect a persons perception: age, gender, history,
culture
■ Temperament
■ Social support
■ Culture
■ spirituality/religion
● Relaxation techniques
○ Biofeedback: involves using visual or auditory feedback to gain control over
involuntary bodily functions.
■ The goal is to make subtle changes to the body to result in the desired
effect
○ Deep breathing exercises
■ Relax, inhale through nose, hold for 2 seconds, slowly exhale through
mouth. Repeat 2-3 times
○ Guided imagery
■ People are taught to focus on pleasant images to replace negative or
stressful feelings.
○ Meditation
○ Physical exercise
■ Walking, running, swimming, yoga
○ Cognitive reframing
■ Changes an individual's perception of stress by reassessing a situation
and replacing irrational beliefs. From “ I’ll never” to “ I should have”.
○ Journaling
○ Humour
● Effects of stress on the body:
○ headache, anxiety, depression, backaches, insomnia, ED, decreased libdo,
increased/decreased appetite, increased BP HR and Blood glucose
● Crisis and disaster
○ What is a crisis?
■ crisis : an event that will or may lead to an unstable and dangerous
situation affecting an individual, group, or society
■ Crisis intervention: a directive, time limited, and goal directed strategy
designed to assist those experiencing a crisis
■ Perception of threat: a person’s coping abilities. Perspective, culture and
past experiences can affect this
■ Support systems
■ Coping mechanisms: can be adaptive (healthy) or maladaptive
(unhealthy)
● Adaptive: exercise, reading, journaling
Downloaded by Josephine Kimani ()
