More and more people are stressed today than ever before. What are the causes of this stress? Why is this happening? What can be done to address this problem?

Stress, in everyday terms, is a feeling that people have when they are overloaded and struggling to cope with

demands

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the demands

. These demands can be related to finances, work, relationships, and other situations, but anything that poses a real or perceived challenge or threat to a person's well-being can cause stress. Stress can be a motivator. It can be essential to survival. The "fight-or-flight" mechanism can tell us when and how to respond to danger.

However

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, if

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mechanism is triggered too easily, or when there are too many

stressors

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at one time, it can undermine a person's mental and physical health and become harmful. According to the annual stress survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), average stress levels in the United States (U.S.)

rose

any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses

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from 4.9 to 5.1 on a scale from 1 to 10 in 2015. The main reasons given are employment and money. Stress is the

body

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's natural

defense

(military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies

defence

against predators and danger. It flushes the

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with hormones to prepare systems to evade or confront danger.

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is known as the "fight-or-flight" mechanism. When we are faced with a challenge, part of our response is physical. The

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activates

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the resources

to protect us by preparing us either to stay and fight or to get away as fast as possible. The

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produces larger quantities of the chemicals cortisol, adrenaline, and noradrenaline. These trigger an increased heart rate, heightened muscle preparedness, sweating, and alertness. All these factors improve the ability to respond to a hazardous or challenging situation. Factors of the environment that trigger

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reaction are called

stressors

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. Examples include noises, aggressive

behavior

manner of acting or controlling yourself

behaviour

, a speeding car, scary moments in movies, or even going out on a

first

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date. The more

stressors

the relative prominence of a syllable or musical note (especially with regard to stress or pitch)

stresses

we experience, the more stressed we tend to feel.