The Consequences of Stress

One of the pioneers of stress research, Dr. Hans Selye wrote that "...stress is essentially reflected by the rate of all the wear and tear caused by life."

His research convinced him that the body has only a finite reserve of adaptation energy to apply to the stressors of life. Selye likened this reserve to a bank account upon which we can make withdrawals from time to time but into which we cannot make deposits. It is a non-renewable reserve of energy which we draw on throughout life until eventually it is consumed and death results.

Over a long period of time the stress response begins to take a toll on the body.

A weakened immune system makes us vulnerable to infection and this is why people under stress often experience regular attacks of colds and flu. We can do ourselves a great deal of harm by stressful thinking. We can flood our body with stress hormones and this can create a vicious circle making us more and more stressful.

EXERCISES

I. Answer the following questions on the text.

1. Is it impossible to avoid stressors?

2. What stressors can you enumerate?

II. Answer the question expressing your own opinion. (no less that 10 sentences).

Have you ever feel any consequences of stress in your life?

III. Give Russian equivalents of the following.

Challenge of pushing physical resources, to achieve a demanding goal, exam pressure, destructive force, receive an unexpected promotion or reward, natural biological stress-adjustors.

IV. Find English equivalents in the text

Интенсивное движение, выхлопные газы, унаследовать большую сумму денег, неизбежная часть жизни, разрушенные отношения, фактор стресса, последствия стресса.

V. Give the summary of the text.

VIII. Read the text and then translate it in writing.

Psychoanalysis and Person-Centered Therapy

In psychoanalysis, the objective is to uncover underlying conflicts that the client has repressed. These are considered to be at the heart of the client's problem.

Free association, during which the client is encouraged to talk about any­thing that comes to mind, is used to get at unconscious conflicts. Another method involves dream analysis. During therapy, the client may view the thera­pist as a parent figure or an adversary. This is called transference. During free association, there are times when the client expresses an unwillingness to elab­orate on a topic or theme. This is called resistance and is seen as a sign that the client is getting closer to the repressed conflict.

Short-term dynamic psychotherapy uses many of the features of psycho­analysis. However, the process is speeded up because the therapist takes a more active role, challenging the client's beliefs.

As the name implies, person-centered therapy focuses on the client as the source of self-help. The therapist carefully guides the client to self-insights by paraphrasing the client's ideas and providing positive regard.