Integrative Health
“A seed hidden in the heart of an apple
is an orchard invisible.”

Intergrated Health inspiration quotes

On Stress

Background and definitions
from science-based references:

  • "Stress plays a key role in chronic and psycho-physiological illness, including cellular immunity. A stressor is any environmental or psychic disturbance that disrupts homeostatic equilibrium." – Quote from Ch. 3, Mind-Body Medicine, from the book:

    Kligler, B., & Lee, R. (2004). Integrative Medicine: Principles for Practice. McGraw-Hill Professional.

  • Definitions of Stress: "Stress is the experience of a perceived threat (real or imagined) to one's mental, physical, or spiritual well-being, resulting from a series of physiological responses and adaptations. In Eastern philosophies, stress is considered to be an absence of inner peace. In Western culture, stress can be described as a loss of emotional control. Psychologically speaking, stress as defined by noted researcher Richard Lazarus is a state of anxiety produced when events and responsibilities exceed one's coping abilities. Physiologically speaking, stress is defined as the rate of wear and tear on the body." – Quote from Ch. 1: The Nature of Stress, from the book:

    Seaward, B. L. (2009). Managing Stress: Principles and Strategies for Health and Well-Being. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, LLC.

  • On Stress: "Stress is a physical, chemical, or an emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation (Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary). To help you recognize stress, discover whether the person is experiencing objective stress, such as the death of a loved one and how they interpret the situation (subjective stress), whether the situation is an objective stressor or not. Example of subjective stress: If we perceive the animal in the pasture to be a bull, we believe it is a bull, and we tell ourselves we are in danger as it comes toward us, then we will have a stress reaction; this happens even though the animal is a gentle cow)." – Quote from Ch. 5: Mechanisms of Stress, from the book:

    Rotan, L. W., & Ospina-Kammerer, V. (2006). MindBody Medicine: Foundations and Practical Applications. Taylor & Francis, Inc.

  • The difference between Eustress and Distress: "If you are perceiving that you have unmet demands placed on you, you feel nervous and tense, you cannot stop to take a break, and you experience sleeplessness because of concern about problems, then you are probably experiencing stress. Remember, in both internal and external stress, the vital element is whether one perceives and believes there is hope (eustress) or no hope (distress). To help prevent stress and manage it when it does occur, there are definite proactive approaches." – Quote from Ch. 5: Mechanisms of Stress, from the book:

    Rotan, L. W., & Ospina-Kammerer, V. (2006). MindBody Medicine: Foundations and Practical Applications. Taylor & Francis, Inc.

  • Perception and beliefs as mediators in the formation of disease: "Mediators, as the name implies, do not 'cause' disease. They are intermediaries that contribute to the manifestations of disease. Mediators vary in form and substance. They may be biochemical (like prostanoids and cytokines), ionic (like hydrogen ions), social (like reinforcement for staying ill), or psychological (like fear). Illness in any single person involves multiple interacting mediators. Biochemical, psychosocial, and cultural mediators interact continuously in the formation of illness. Cassell argues that suffering, an important manifestation of illness, results from fear of loss – loss of life, identity, independence, valued relationships, and hopes for the future. The suffering of sickness, then, is mediated by fear, and by the associated thoughts and beliefs, personal and communal, with which we label, explain, and evaluate the experience of being sick. These cognitive mediators determine how patients appraise symptoms and what actions they take in response to that appraisal. They may even modulate the symptoms themselves. People in pain, for example, experience more pain when they fear that pain control will be inadequate than when they believe that ample pain management is available. Expectations may not only mediate symptoms, but mortality." – Quote from Ch. 4: A New Definition of Patient-Centered Medicine, by Dr. Leo Galland, in the book:

    Kligler, B., & Lee, R. (2004). Integrative Medicine: Principles for Practice. McGraw-Hill Professional.

  • "Throughout this book, Rotan and Ospina-Kammerer discuss the inter-relationships between a wide variety of diseases and other health problems and the activities of the mind that seem to influence these interactions. They note that 'our thoughts (ex: mental activities such as perception, belief, memory) play a powerful role in distress (e.g., perceiving and believing you are in great danger and being unable to escape may bring about a stress reaction even though there is no real objective danger).'" – Quote from the Series Editor's (Charles R. Figley) Foreword, from the book:

    Rotan, L. W., & Ospina-Kammerer, V. (2006). MindBody Medicine: Foundations and Practical Applications. Taylor & Francis, Inc.

  • On Stress and Spirituality: "In the past decade, a new definition has emerged from the fields of transpersonal and humanistic psychology that springs from a spiritual place. From the perspective, stress is seen as a feeling of separateness from God, a feeling of being disconnected from our divine source. This perception is really an illusion, for we are never really detached from God (whatever we conceive God to be). Perhaps poet Maya Angelow said it best when she wrote, 'I believe that Spirit is one and everywhere present. That it never leaves me. That in my ignorance I may withdraw from it, but I can realize its presence the instant I return to my senses.' " – Quote from Pg. 16, Ch. 1, Stress with a Human Face, from the book:

    Brian Luke Seaward, P. (2007). Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Reflections on Stress
    and Human Spirituality
    . Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc.
  • On the Stress Response: "Stress plays a key role in chronic and psycho-physiological illness, including cellular immunity. A stressor is any environmental or psychic disturbance that disrupts homeostatic equilibrium. The 'stress response' is the body's survival mechanism in the face of perceived or actual threat – highly effective in acute situations, but physically deleterious when the sources of stress (stressors) do not abate over time. Health appears most compromised when the stress response is either repeatedly switched on or cannot shut down. Repeated exposure to stressful events results in a response of surrender, associated with helplessness, depression, and down regulation of the immune system. The chronically stressed individual reacts to minor daily problems as if they were major catastrophes, and it is possible that these micro-stresses (minor aggravations or hassles) which afflict us on a regular basis are more deleterious to the immune system than responses to major single life events, such as bereavement." – Quote from Ch. 3: Mind-Body Medicine, by Suzanne Little, Ph.D., from the book:

    Kligler, B., & Lee, R. (2004). Integrative Medicine: Principles for Practice. McGraw-Hill Professional.

  • On Psychological Well-being: "Resources refer to any 'objects, personal characteristics, conditions, or energies that are valued by the individual' (Hobfoll, 1989, p. 516). Of particular relevance to this review is the specific 'intrinsic energetic resource' of vigor, defined as an individual possessing physical presence, cognitive alertness, and emotional energy (Hobfoll & Shirom, 2001). Stress results from depleting resources. As a result, resources must be conserved or replenished to maintain psychological well-being (Hobfoll, 1989)." – Quote from Pg. 161, Ch. 12: Human Energy in Organizations, from the book:

    Cameron, K. S., & Spreitzer, G. M. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Positive Organizational Scholarship. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.

  • On Vigor: "Vigor is conceptualized as the exact opposite of emotional exhaustion (Maslach & Leiter, 2008). Schaufeli et al. (2002) broadened the definition of vigor beyond energy to include mental resilience, willingness to invest effort in one's work, and persistence in the face of difficulties. Although the engagement researchers have broadened Hobfoll's (1989) definition of vigor, it is safe to say that feeling energetic is a subdimension of being engaged in one's work. An important insight of Conservation of Resources (CoR) theory is that job resources/demands serve as a strong predictor of vigor. Vigor can be depleted when job demands are high and depleting vigor over the long run is likely to lead to emotional exhaustion (Sonnentag & Niessen, 2008). To restore vigor, one must either engage in recovery processes or obtain job resources." – Quote from Pg. 162, Ch. 12: Human Energy in Organizations, from the book:

    Cameron, K. S., & Spreitzer, G. M. (2012). The Oxford Handbook of Positive Organizational Scholarship. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.

Note by Kranti:

Seeing the big picture, looking at problems as opportunities for growth, discovering possibilities and seeing the silver lining are some examples of adopting helpful ways of looking at life's challenges, resiliently coping with events and coming out stronger from the experiences. A useful quote that comes to mind on this topic is: "Attitude is the paintbrush with which we color the world."