Rest, stress and its effects on mental and physical activity

Abstract

In these modern times the rate of illnesses that are related to stress and it’s frequency, especially among teenagers is alarming, while the explanation you’ll hear is “there is no time” this is not entirely true as time is constant, However studies have shown that those who have a time-table and follow through have ‘more time’ than those who procrastinate. This will later result in stress as the amount of sleep the body needs is being cut short. This being stated it is definitely important to view the relationship between rest and stress, as it is of great significance to reduce the rate of the diseases produced by this very common phenomenon. The first way of going about this is to find the cause of stress and to see the amount of rest regarded as adequate. Although a lot of people know that lack of rest leads to stress and its most common form of manifestation is Depression, they probably haven’t realized why depression and its relation to our - 7 - hormonal regulation. Stress is amount of force exerted per unit area; Nature’s way of improving our productivity; Consequences of the failure of the body to appropriately respond to external threats (emotional or physical) be they real or imagined.The body’s stress response is perfect in the short-term, but damaging if it goes on for weeks or years. Raised levels of cortisol for prolonged periods can damp down your immune system and decrease the number of brain cells so impairing memory. It can also affect blood pressure and the fats in the blood making it more likely for heart attack or stroke.