What is stress?

What is stress?

• A. A negative feeling with no physical reaction.
• B. Only mental strain with no physical effects.
• C. Body's reaction to stimuli requiring adjustment to a changing environment; CHANGE INITIATES STRESS.
• D. A permanent state of anxiety.

Answer: (C)

Stress is the body's response to stimuli that require adjustment to a changing environment. When something in the environment changes or a demand is placed on you, your body activates physiological systems—hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, quicker heart rate, tense muscles—to prepare you to cope. This makes stress a dynamic process with physical and emotional components, not just a negative feeling. It’s not simply mental strain, and it isn’t a permanent state; the response diminishes once you adapt or the situation changes.

Stress is the body's response to stimuli that require adjustment to a changing environment. When something in the environment changes or a demand is placed on you, your body activates physiological systems—hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, quicker heart rate, tense muscles—to prepare you to cope. This makes stress a dynamic process with physical and emotional components, not just a negative feeling. It’s not simply mental strain, and it isn’t a permanent state; the response diminishes once you adapt or the situation changes.