Stress Induced AsthmaHow does stress affect asthma?
Stress induced asthma What is Asthma? Asthma is a chronic illness which constricts or inflames the respiratory system making it difficult to breathe. Asthma is triggered by things in the environment such as pollen, dust, temperature, etc. Other known triggers are cold and flues, exercise and emotional stress. Stress and emotional arousal are associated with an increase in respiratory rate. When we perceive a situation threatening our wellbeing the Sympathetic Nervous System responds rapidly to mobilize the body’s defence mechanism, increasing heart rate, blood pressure, pupil dilation, perspiration, cardiac blood flow, breathing becomes deeper and faster, adrenaline is produced which stimulates the heart and other organs to help defend the body. Stressful situations change our respiratory rates. Stress Induced Asthma and Emotions: Emotions influence the respiratory system. Emotional arousal and psychological stress has been shown to increase breathing rate and irregularity. Asthma may occur from situations that induced strong emotional reactions such as guilt, anger and loosing a loved one preceding an asthma attack. In the early 1900’s asthma was recognised as a psychosomatic illness. Psychosomatic illness is an illness that has developed due to mind and emotion issues that have not been dealt with. In particular, asthma was considered to be a problem relationship with the mother and her child. Many studies have been done since to examine the affects of stress on asthma.
Some people feel that their first asthma attack occurred due to an emotional life event, such as a death in the family and the process of mourning. Other experiences include bereavement, martial difficulties, problems in the work place, and worries about finance, sexual conflicts, and the illness of a loved one.
What causes stress induced asthma? Daily stressful life events and asthma symptoms are positively correlated. Stressors in our daily lives affect our nervous system and increase our heart rate and breathing. Emotional stress is seen to be linked to having an asthma attack. Stressful situations are seen to happen before an asthma attack, but do they cause an asthma attack? Stress factors are important to consider, but do not necessary induce asthma. Situations that are perceived by one person to be stressful may be considered a welcomed challenge by another. A person’s reaction to stressors depends on their attitudes and how they perceive and react to the situation. If a person believes they are not in control of the situation it might provoke feelings of anxiety and panic, which could result in stress induced asthma.
A number of people experience stress induced asthma when introduced to certain objects. When a person’s asthma is regularly precipitated by a flower or weed, they can experience an asthma attack when shown a flower made of paper. Sometimes this sensitivity to certain object trigger an asthma experience whether the object is real or seems to be real. This shows that psychological factors such as our beliefs, attitudes and feelings about situations or objects can create an asthma attack. In relation to stress induced asthma, its important to take into consideration a person’s cognitions about circumstances where they are not coping with stressors effectively. By treating the underlying psychological factors it may be possible to overcome experiences of anxiety and stress where the respiratory system is affected. ***************************************************** Bibliography Buckingham, J.C., Gillies, G.E. & Cowell, A. (1997). ?Stress, stress hormones and the immune system. John Wiley & Sons, London. Hubbard, J.R. & Workman, E.A. (1998). Handbook of stress medicine: An organ system approach. CRC Press, New York. Lovallo, W.R. (2005). Stress & Health. Sage Publications, California. Oxington, K.V. (2005). Stress and health: New research. Nova Medical Books, New York. Also see the complete Bibliography *****************************************************
How does stress affect health?
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