5. Have you ever had deja vu? If yes, please, describe when it happened and how you felt. Ask your friends if they had deja vu. Ask them about their experience. Deja vu

The term deja vu is French and means, literally, "already seen." Those who have experienced the feeling describe it as an overwhelming sense of familiarity with something that shouldn't be familiar at all. For example, you are traveling to London for the first time. You are in the cathedral, and suddenly it seems as if you have been in that place before. Or maybe you are having dinner with a group of friends, discussing some current political topic, and you have the feeling that you've already experienced this very thing — same friends, same dinner, and same topic.

The phenomenon is rather complex, and there are many different theories as to why deja vu happens.

The term was introduced by Emile Boirac (1851—1917), who had strong interests in phenomena. Boirac's term directs our attention to the past. What is unique about deja vu is not something from the past but something in the present, namely, the strange feeling one has. We often have experiences the novelty of which is unclear. In such cases we may have been led to ask such questions as, "Have I read this book before?" "This place looks familiar; have I been here before?" We may feel confused, but the feeling associated with the deja vu experience is not one of confusion, it is one of strangeness. There is nothing strange about not remembering whether you've read a book before, especially if you are fifty years old and have read thousands of books over your life-time. In the deja vu experience, however, we feel strange because we don't think we should feel familiar with the present perception. That sense of inappropriateness is not present when one is simply unclear whether one has read a book or seen a film before.

The Swiss scholar Arthur Funkhouser suggests that there are several "deja experiences" and asserts that in order to better study the phe­nomenon, the nuances between the experiences need to be noted. In the examples mentioned at the beginning, Funkhouser would describe the first incidence as deja visite ("already visited") and the second as deja vecu ("already experienced or lived through").

As much as 70 percent of the population reports having experienced some form of deja vu. A higher number of incidents occur in people 15 to 25 years old than in any other age group.

Since deja vu occurs in individuals with and without a medical condition, there is much speculation as to how and why this phenomenon happens. Several psychoanalysts attribute deja vu to simple fantasy or wish fulfillment, while some psychiatrists think it is a mismatching in the brain that causes the brain to mistake the present for the past. Many parapsychologists believe it is related to a past-life experience. Obviously, there is more investigation to be done.

6. Describe the role of stress in your life. In what situations do you experience stress? What is the positive role of stress in you life? What is the negative role of stress in your life?

STRESS AT WORK

Job stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job stress can lead to poor health and even injury.

The concept of job stress is often confused with challenge, but these concepts are not the same. Challenge energizes us psychologically and physically, and it motivates us to learn new skills and master our jobs. When a challenge is met, we feel relaxed and satisfied. Thus, challenge is an important ingredient for healthy and productive work.

Nearly everyone agrees that job stress results from the interaction of the worker and the conditions of work. Views differ, however, on the importance of worker characteristics versus working conditions as the primary cause of job stress. These differing viewpoints are important because they suggest different ways to prevent stress at work. Although the importance of individual differences cannot be ignored, scientific data suggests that certain working conditions are stressful to most people.

Stress sets off an alarm in the brain, which responds by preparing the body for defensive action. The nervous system is aroused and hormones are released to sharpen the senses, quicken the pulse, deepen respiration, and tense the muscles. This response is important because it helps us defend against threatening situations. The response is preprogrammed biologically. Everyone responds in much the same way, regardless of whether the stressful situation is at work or home.

Short-lived or infrequent episodes of stress bear little risk. But when stressful situations go unresolved, the body is kept in a constant state of activation, which increases the rate of wear and tear to biological systems. The ability of the body to repair and defend itself becomes low. As a result, the risk of injury or disease escalates.

In the past 20 years, many studies have looked at the relationship between job stress and a variety of ailments. Mood and sleep problems, upset stomach and headache, and poor relationships with family and friends are examples of stress-related problems that are quick to develop and are commonly seen in these studies. These early signs of job stress are usually easy to recognize. The evidence is rapidly accumulating to suggest that stress plays an important role in several types of chronic health problems — especially cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal disorders, and psychological disorders.

Stress is an unavoidable consequence of life. As Hans Selye noted, "Without stress, there would be no life". Stress is not always necessarily harmful. Winning a race or election can be just stressful as losing, but may trigger very different biological responses. Increased stress results in increased productivity — up to a point. We all need to find the proper level of stress that allows us to perform optimally as we go through life.

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/stresswk.html, http://www.stress.org

Questions to the text.

1. How can job stress be defined?

2. What can job stress lead to?

3. What other concept is usually confused with the concept of job stress?

4. What does a challenge do to us?

5. How do we feel when a challenge is met?

6. Where does job stress result from?

7. What are the primary causes of job stress?

8. How does the nervous system respond in stressful situations?

9. Why is this response of a nervous system important?

10. What stress poses little risk?

11. What happens when stressful situations go unresolved and last for a long time?

12. What are the early signs of stress related problems?

13. What is the role of stress in chronic health problems?