Stress has been linked to an increasing number of mental and physical illnesses in recent years. Specifically, depression related to stress has been shown to affect patients of all ages in both genders.
Stress is defined as a mental or physical tension resulting from physical, emotional or chemical factors. Emerging research shows that depression related to stress affects male and female patients covering a wide range of ages from puberty to later-life. In addition to mental health practitioners the link between stress and depression is of interest to employers and insurers because of the potential economic impact of the disorder. An examination of the relationship between stress and depression will be presented along with the currently available treatment options.
Stress is defined as a mentally or emotionally distracting condition occurring because of difficult pressures. Stress affects a person's physical health; usually the symptoms are increased heart rate, a rise in blood pressure, irritability, and depression. This plague can affect all ages and both genders. The main reason why stress is so dangerous is because it can be fatal to a person's health.
In his article, "The Ravages of Stress", Michael D. Lemonick conclusively ties aging with stress. There are three main distinctions found in cells of the more stressed women - each has its own role in the aging process of these women as well. The cells had shorter telomeres. Telomeres are bits of DNA that cap the ends of chromosomes. Through previous lab experiments it can be proven that telomeres get a little smaller each time a cell divides and that when telomeres are worn out, cells can't divide any longer and eventually die. In older humans people tend to have shorter telomeres, so by this measure, the most stressed women had cells that looked ten years older than their actual age.
In today's practice of psychology, anti-anxiety medications, such as barbituates and nenzodiazepines, and biofeedback, the control of physical factors such as blood pressure and heart rate, are two common practices for reducing physiological stress.
People often turn to alcohol to relieve their stress. In fact, however, alcohol provides only temporary relief and actually causes more stress for those who consume it as well as physical and emotional damage. Other methods of coping with stress that should be considered before turning to alcohol are mentioned here.
