Conigliaro 1

Ali Conigliaro

Professor Leonard

English 1201.507

15 March 2020

Literature Review

Stress is a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very

demanding circumstances. For humans today, it is very common to experience the feeling of

stress. Whether it be from school, work, family, or friends, everyone deals with it at one point or

another. Some may deal with it better than others. On the other hand, some might just try to

ignore it as best as they possibly can. My goal is to find many different coping mechanisms for

stress.

The term “stress” became known in the 1920s by Hans Selye. After completing his

medical training, he noticed that all his patients were undergoing physical stress. Not everyone

agreed with his thought that stress impacted health. Selye believed that stress was a non-specific

phenomenon. Many disagreed with this because if that was the case, everyone would react the

same way to stress. Over time, researchers found that everyone has different types of stressors,

but they share common elements that elevate stress hormones.

A common first step to coping with stress is realizing how you stress and trying to think

differently of your stress. In “How to Better at Stress,” it is said that changing your perception of

your stress helps tremendously. For example, Parker-Pope states that you can view stress as

something that is harmful to your body, or as something that is making you stronger and more

able to overcome struggles in your life (1). Another good tip is to do relaxation exercises. An

exercise that “Stress-Relief-Tools.com” give is called the “Easy 1-2-3-4-5 Technique.” This is
 Conigliaro 2

where you “Look around and name 5 things that you see. Name 5 things that you hear. Start over

and name 4 things that you see (they can be the same ones that you named before). Name 4

things that you hear. Then - 3 things that you see and 3 things that you hear. Continue with 2

things that you see and 2 things that you hear. For the last round, name 1 thing that you see and

then 1 thing that you hear.” (1). I have noticed this technique to be helpful to myself when I feel

like I am about to have a panic attack, or my thoughts are just getting out of hand.

Some foods are known to help raise serotonin levels in our body. Serotonin helps regulate

mood and social behavior, appetite and digestion, sleep, memory, and sexual desire and function.

This meaning that a lack of serotonin in our bodies can make us feel more depressed and

anxious. In “Foods for Anxiety: Lower Kids’ Stress Levels with These Healthy Choices,”

William W. Li said that pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, walnuts, cashews and chickpeas can help

with raising serotonin levels in our bodies. Adding to those, turkey, salmon, eggs and some

dairy products also help with raising serotonin levels. However, it is shown that having a plant-

based diet helps reduce stress levels in our bodies.

While there are lots of natural and healthy ways to help reduce our stress, there will be

some advertisements for products that say they will do the same thing that you should be

cautious of. Some brands will try to promote pills or supplements that they say will help reduce

your stress. While these pills might help, there are most likely harmful long-term effects that

come with it. If possible, it is best to use natural ways to help reduce your stresses and keep you

calm.
 Conigliaro 3

Works Cited

Brazelton, T. Berry. "Working parents: one of America's leading pediatricians tells how

to cope with the stresses of jobs and family life." Newsweek, vol. 113, no. 7, 13

Feb. 1989, p. 66+. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A7010788/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=0715adb2 . Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

Li W, William, MD. Foods for Anxiety: Lower Kids’ Stress Levels with These Healthy

Choices. U.S News and World Report, L.P, 2019, t.ly/ep6Or. Accessed 28 Feb.

2020.

Pope, Tara. How to be Better at Stress. New York Times,

https://www.nytimes.com/guides/well/how-to-deal-with-stress. Accessed 28 Feb.

2020.

Stress Relief Tools- Your Guide to Relaxation. 2015, http://www.stress-relief-tools.com/.

Accessed 28 Feb. 2020.

Stress Tip Sheet. American Psychological Association, 2007,

https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2007/10/stress-tips. Accessed 28 Feb.

2020.