III. Investigation:

Grabber

• Today, we analyze stress as a modern situation, but it has been around since the time that cavemen roamed the Earth. However, it was not studied until roughly around the nineteen-fifties. It is proven that extreme stress can cause severe threats to our mental capabilities as well as several aspects of our health and lifestyle. The development of stress is a process within the mind that requires attention. The initial cause of stress impacts how a situation is addressed. What most people use to control anxiety, however, may only increase the issue when there are more effective solutions.

II. Topic Sentence

Stress is the reaction towards a change in our environment. For instance, humans react differently to possible threats than animals do. Psychologists Bob Montgomery and Laurel Morris explain that while all animals react to

fears, the human brain allows us to anticipate a threat before it happens. The Brain evaluates the stressors in our lives and triggers our reaction. It allows us

to store memory but also fear. This ability makes us different from other animals. This characteristic enables us to respond to threats. A particular

reaction is known as the “fight or flight” response. In Dr.Frey and Dr. Odle’s catalogue, Anxiety, this reaction is described as “a state of physiological and

emotional hyper arousal marked by high muscle tension and strong feelings of fear or anger…”(3). Without this response, humans would not know when there is danger. However, an exaggeration of this response opens the doors

wide to anxiety. Even a mild case has these little responses. It is with this that the cycle of panic attacks and anxiety begins.

Stress is a complex subject; some people can tell when they feel stressed and others struggle to realize it. However, Dr. Frey and Dr. Odle describe what happens within the body during stressful moments is the same. When we

respond to a real threat, hormones are released to aid the body. However, when there is no real threat, our body has to absorb these hormones rather than release them through physical activity. We may not be aware of it, but this is affecting

our bodies in a negative way. A previous patient that suffered from stress tells in an interview, “I just thought it was me worrying. I was in a situation I didn’t

want to be in and I didn’t think of it as anxiety at the time. I just thought I had to get out of it and I couldn’t see a way” (Quaranta 1). Dr. Quaranta did not

realize that he suffered from stress until health issues started affecting his life. It has been proved that stress worsens present illness. People have come to realize the intensity of stress, but the ways they go about “solving” stress may increase

it more.