Ural Federal University: Resistance to Stress and Anxiety Can Be Trained Like a Muscle
Humans, unlike the animal world, are oriented toward finding problems. The human being is constantly looking at his environment and discovering imperfections that make him think about what could be changed and improved. This is how the emotions of anxiety and stress emerge. Without moderate stress it is impossible for a person to develop, yet the constant presence in these situations has a negative impact on his mental and physical health. That is why it is necessary to cultivate resilience – the ability not to increase anxiety, but to cope with it correctly and in time.
Stress, like any other emotion, is important for humans. It helps to solve non-standard problems aimed at protecting oneself in the face of change and instability. The nature of anxiety, on the other hand, is such that one looks to the future with two ideas in mind: something bad might happen, and I cannot cope with it and keep myself safe if it does. Being constantly anxious can lead a person to a state of distress. Rustam Muslumov, Associate Professor of the Department of Pedagogy and Psychology of Education at Ural Federal University, spoke about this on the Komsomolskaya Pravda broadcast.
“Distress is an increased pressure on a person when he finds himself in a situation that he cannot cope with or affect. For example, the world events that are happening right now. One is under severe emotional strain, but at the same time he cannot influence what is happening. Then he begins to read a lot of information, believing that in this way he is in control of something. In this way he begins to think about what he will do in various situations. This obsession makes the person not more prepared, but anxious. The body is constantly releasing stress hormones, yet the person does nothing. If something really happens eventually, the body has to release more hormones. The person starts shaking and pounding. Such a situation does not help to react soberly and develop a strategy of action. To avoid this, we need to cultivate resilience – tolerance for what we cannot control,” Rustam Muslumov explains.
Practicing resilience, dealing with anxiety, involves three basic skills. The first is engagement in the present moment, abstracting thoughts of the past and the future. The easiest way to practice engagement is to concentrate on a physical state, such as washing the dishes. In this moment it is important to watch your movements, your breathing, to be immersed as much as possible in thoughts only on this task.
The next step is risk taking. Soberly assessing what is happening, thinking about what might happen, thinking about how it might be affected. The scientist notes that the problem is in thinking up unrealistic scenarios and unrealistic rituals for ourselves when we find ourselves in a stressful situation, which do not help us cope with the problem. For example, putting a coin in your shoe during an exam, rather than believing in your own knowledge. Finally, the third step is to be active in mastering dangerous and disturbing situations for yourself: making and implementing plans, being able to speak out when something brings discomfort.
As the psychologist explains, as a result, more resilient people think more about their lives, about what depends on them, are absorbed in what they are doing in the moment, and do not hide from possible threats, accepting the possibility of a negative outcome.