The Cause of Stress

The cause of stress differs depending on how prone you are to anxiety, depression and tension. Stressful situations can be unhappy or unfortunate events or happy events such as a new baby, new house or wedding. Stress can have an impact on your mental and physical health.

Types

• The top causes of stress are the death of a spouse, divorce, marriage, pregnancy, buying a house and Christmas. Positive and negative events can be stressful because they cause worry and tension.

Considerations

• Job-related stress is very common. This is especially true in careers with extreme deadline pressure.

Expert Insight

• If you are impatient and drive yourself hard to succeed or have a history of mental illness, you are more prone to stress-related problems.

Identification

• Stress is evident if you experience a change in emotions, behaviors, feelings, physical health and body functions. You may experience backache, a nervous stomach, be irritable or sad, eat too much or too little, have trouble concentrating or feel hopeless.

Effects

• Long-term stress can lead to serious health problems such as effects to your immune system, higher blood pressure, increased risk of heart attack and stroke, advanced aging and infertility.