Webster’s International Dictionary defines the word stress as “a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation”. Stress is an integral part of the mental state of people around the globe, as it can define and dictate the actions taken in the average day to day operations of that same population. As a general population, people tend to act to relive stress, trying to avoid the harm of the inevitable anxiety that they will face at least once a day. The question then becomes: What does civilization try to achieve when they are avoiding stress? The answer can vary from person to person as everyone has his or her own agenda, but success is generally the overall mainstay in all of the answers. Success, as defined by Webster’s, is a “favorable or desired outcome”. The principle of success has become a determinate and motivator for continued progression toward happiness in today’s society; the main goal in many lives is just that. As stress and success can be seen as polar opposites, they play hand and hand with one another. Both stress and success can have effects on personal health. However, with stronger stressors today, society is hindered by stress and, therefore; the negative impacts far outweighs its counterpart.

 Stress is a universal term, however, remains somewhat of a mystery. Research has been done for years and always comes up inconclusive; doctors and experts have tried to explain why stressors affect the brain in a negative manner. This is especially true with young professionals and students, as a recent study was prepared at NYU, stating “there is growing awareness many subgroups of youth experience high levels of chronic stress, to the extent it impedes their abilities to succeed academically, compromises their mental health functioning, and fosters risk behavior” (NYU). It was recorded that nearly half, 49 percent, “reported feeling a great deal of stress on a daily basis, as with young professionals” (NYU). This provides a recent basis to a timely debate, proving that the stress endured by children is overbearing, often hindering their overall progression.

Whilst researching and investigating the effects of stress, whether it is emotional, physical, or psychological it is “important to consider the cognitive implications of such events” (Conrad 95). As research gained traction, neuroscientists began to question what really made up stress. During initial research, experts believed that stress was the same for everyone, as studies had shown in 1932 by Cannon. “For Cannon (1932) the focus was on exploring the sympathetic-adrenal (i.e. autonomic) response to an immediate stressor” (Conrad 5). Cannon also found that the same process was “inhibiting unnecessary energy-utilizing processes such as digestion and reproduction” (Conrad 5). With this, Cannon was able to set the foundation for modern day research.

Expanding on the work of Cannon, Hans Selye wanted to explore the other primary stress producing system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA). Through his research, Selye conducted “a reliable pattern of physiological reactions that corresponded to the body’s attempt to mediate resistance to a threat” (Conrad 5). Selye described that the brain, went through three stages to deal with stress: an alarm stage, a resistance stage, and an exhaustion stage.. Selye was able to differentiate between various personal reactions to stress, which set the framework for biological factors pertaining to stress by developing the idea of Glucocortoids (GC’s) and stress. This is where the notion that stress effected people individually and personally began 

As research continued, more knowledge about stress was processed. In 1984, Munck discovered that stress could have positive effects as well; it could start inflammatory responses. This research led scientists to go down two very unique and different paths; either stress corresponded with Munck’s conclusion stating that stress had a positive impact on one’s health, versus the foundational negative impact laid out by pioneers and reinforced by later researchers whom had seen Munck’s argument against Cannon and Selye. Many reasons support, and reinforce, what Cannon and Selye had initially predicted, a negative impact on a person’s health.

As with most research, there are conflicting views about stress. Stress is commonly perceived as an amenity for failure. People generalize stress and immediately deem it negative, but rightfully so. In a study conducted by Anita DeLongis at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Richard S. Lazarus of the University of California, Berkley, and Susan Folkman of the University of California, San Francisco was conducted and examined the daily stress process among 75 married couples across 20 assessments during a 6-month period. The somatic and psychological effects of common everyday hassles were investigated. 

The conclusion, although unexpected, was quiet remarkable.. DeLongis concluded that overall, “there was a significant relationship between daily stress and the occurrence of both subsequent health problems such as the flu, sore throat, headache, and backache” (DeLongis). The study then went on to describe mood and it too was affected by stress, as “daily stress was associated with health and mood differences across time” (DeLongis). It was found that the participants with unsupportive social relations and low self-esteem were more likely to experience an increase in psychological and somatic problems both on and following stressful days than were participants with high self-esteem and social support (DeLongis). Thus, the overall research suggested “persons with low psychological resources are vulnerable to illness and mood disturbance when their stress levels increase, even if they generally have little stress in their lives” (DeLongis).    

The study goes to show that overall, the more stressful couples faired worse medically, as the stress caused flu symptoms as well as other common but serious illness. As well, stress feeds off the mental wellbeing of a person, meaning if a specific person has been completing against low self-esteem, depression, or any other mental instability, the stress effects endured would be far more severe. 

This may seem insignificant until one understands that “one in every five adults suffers from a mental health issue, one in ten children have experienced a period of major depression, and one in every twenty-five Americans lives with a serious mental health illness” (mentalhealth.gov). 

This truly means that stress can chronically affect about a quarter of our population. This impacts the overall wellbeing of one’s mental state. This can be a “catch 22”, especially for students in this day and age.  As the more academic students are striving for success and perfection, the amount of stress they put themselves under can affect them physically and mentally, both.  This can, in turn, cause mental instability and breakdown. As that mental instability increases, the brain becomes used to the stress and starts to not release specific hormones needed for that stability to come back. Stress can break us down to the point where our brains do not realize a true “happiness”, instead interprets less stress as a “psuedohappiness,” causing blindness of what is really going on.  

 

In an article written by Don Joseph Goewey, a respected producer of works about ending stress, he expresses the risks of stress on the brain when it is constant, stating, “Stress can impair the immune system, ruin the cardiovascular system, and damage chromosomes producing cancer cells and prematurely aging you…and can eventually kill you, if you ignore stress” (Goewey). Goewey continues, explaining if you “add together all the life-threatening stress-related illnesses and you have the number one killer of Americans. At work, stress dampens performance, thwarts teamwork, leads people to make bad decisions, and accounts for nearly half of turnover” (Goewey). This goes on to show that, again, stress can cause instability; in his instance, in relationships and performance. 

In further studies it was determined stress is responsible for the production of panic, and while panic can happen very quickly and unforeseen, the majority of panic happens when an individual, or group, experiences a stressful situation. In a study by the American Psychology Association, it was concluded, “stress can cause the rapid breathing—or hyperventilation—that can bring on a panic attack…” (Tovian). In that same study, it was recognized that stress not only was responsible for immunity and mental issues, but also physical pain and cardiovascular issues. In the study done by Dr. Steve Tovian, it was seen that:

“Chronic stress, or a constant stress experienced over a prolonged period of time, can contribute to long-term problems for heart and blood vessels. The consistent and ongoing increase in heart rate, and the elevated levels of stress hormones and of blood pressure, can take a toll on the body. This long-term ongoing stress can increase the risk for hypertension, heart attack or stroke” (Tovian). 

This leads one to recognize that stress has a strong hand in one’s rhythmic beat and the way that they can be at risk for heart and cardiac problems later on in life, as stress can bare down and create arrhythmic function that can create lifelong issues. Stress can then be seen for being responsible for the stroke and heart attack. This is yet another negative impact that stress can have on the human body, since the heart is solely responsible for pumping the necessary components needed to create energy to all parts of the body. When stress is chronic, it affects that same heart and creates risk that otherwise would not be there. As stated by Maggie Fox, a senior writer at NBC News, “eventually, chronic stress could be treated as an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease,” representing just how severe untreated and ignored stress can be.  

Although the cardiac impact on the body seems to be of the upmost importance, there is another portion of the body that stress negatively impacts, that being the musculoskeletal system. It is common for stress to create uneasiness in the stomach and brain, as anxiety can onset from it, but elongated and chronic stress attacks the muscles of its victim. In a recent study done by Dr. Steve Tovian and Dr. Beverly Thorn, it was concluded that, “Chronic stress causes the muscles in the body to be in a more or less constant state of guardedness. When muscles are taut and tense for long periods of time, this may trigger other reactions of the body and even promote stress-related disorders” (Thorn). 

These disorders are diverse and have a variety of forms, but the most common are migraines and headaches. “Tension type headache and migraine headache are associated with chronic muscle tension in the area of the shoulders, neck, and head” (Thorn). As our society enters an era where we are consistently asked to do more than one task at a time, and expected to do them all to perfection, stress can create a an array of negativity to our bodies that can become to hard to handle. The negativity produced to our cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, and nervous systems is overwhelming and should not be taken lightly. Human bodies are durable and are meant to withstand the harshness of life, but when stress because a factor, it can quickly become an issue. 

Stress affects our brains, muscles and immunity as it can attack our mental disorders and feed as if it is a predator to prey. Stress also comes in and irritates our normal rhythmic motion, create fast heartbeat and irregular motion. This leads to the heart attack, cardiac arrest, and strokes we see today. Although it isn’t the leading cause of these heart related deaths, it plays an intricate role in weakening the immunity response, as the immune system is the first thing to be impacted, where stress is both concurrent and subsequent in the flu, sore throat, headache, and backache. 

The question then becomes: why do we continuously add stress to our lives? The answer is in search of success. Success, as previously stated, is “ a favorable or desired outcome.” As it is generally seen as the most desired outcome in life with the stereotypes that it embodies such as wealth, prestige and happiness. Most people strive to maintain a level of success in their lives for these reasons. Success does, in fact, influence lives. People will tell you that it is the most beneficial factor to the high and positive self-esteem someone has. In a study done by J. Sidney Shrauger and Saul E. Rosenberg, self-esteem was evaluated through a study that evaluated 36 males enrolled in psychology at the State University in Buffalo, New York. 

The participants were asked to take questionnaires about their self-esteem, as it was the basis of the study. The traits of these men were studied as well as their success in life. The subjects were then put through the “Feldman-Collier Personality Inference Inventory” in order to understand and assess their sensitivity in judgment of others by evaluating how accurately the subjects could predict others’ attitudes (Rosenberg). The results of the study was that quite interesting, success was a reason for someone to feel better about themselves (Rosenburg). This leads to the argument that stress has a better grip on self-esteem as it can make it increase.  Success is shown to raise self-esteem in individuals whom were tested, and this shows a positive correlation that can be transverse. 

However, it cannot be proved that the positive effects of success outweigh the negative effects of stress. The scientific community is not unified around the idea of success’ benefits, as some studies show that success isn’t always a positive. In a study done by Sonja Lyubomirsky and Laura King, it was concluded that “Although the research in some areas is limited, our explanation suggests that high subjective well-being is related to positive outcomes in many areas of life…happy people appear to be more successful than their less happy peers in the three primary life domains” (Lybomirsky; Matta). This study almost discredits the fact that success creates high self-esteem and happiness and replaces it with the complete opposite fact that happiness creates success. Therefore, the negativity of stress still outweighs the positivity of success because success has actually yet to truly prove any sort of self-esteem upgrade, due to Lybomirsky’s study, while it has been proven by DeLongis that stress causes mental instability. 

One other argument that could have a case made out for it is that fact that success leads to a perfectionist persona, that people are drawn to that type of person. It has been recognized by many professors of psychology that people with a more successful life seem to have the larger crowds drawn to them, that people like them more. As it may seem like that is correct, the Harvard Business School has argued it, though their own review. In a recent article they argue that “people judge expressive winners as arrogant compared to inexpressive and are less likely to befriend them” (Pillary). Pillary discusses that if people do find success, they often flaunt it, and push people away from them.  Also, Pillary finds that as humans, we are always trying to find a problem with others success. She explains “when people are similar but superior to us in their achievements, our brains conflict center is activated leading to envy” (Pillary). This brings attention to the fact people are not always attracted to more successful people. Neurologically, people are set to envy the fact that people are better than them, thus pushing them to not want to be around them. This proves success has a slight positive impact comparatively to the negativity to stress. 

In conclusion, there is strong enough evidence to indicate the thesis; as stress and success can play hand and hand, the negative health impacts of stress far outweigh any positive impact of success. Through studies done by Hans Seyle, Anita DeLongis, Steve Tovian, and Saul E. Rosenberg, it is clear to see the health impacts on the nervous, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, and immune systems are severe if stress isn’t treated, as it usually is not in the correct manner. Stress plays hand and hand with success in a certain way. As the impacts of success can, in fact, cause happiness, there is evidence to back up the fact that it is the other way around, as happiness actually deems success in many cases. With this being said, the negativity of stress can cause heart failure, immunity deficiencies, mental instability, and overall physical pain. As a society, we can act in ways to not necessarily prevent and avoid stress, but act in ways where it is not a hindrance. We can identity our main sources of stress, control them via healthy practices such as a stable sleep schedule and stable diet, and then we can accept the fact that stress is part of our lives. If we view it, as a society, as something that can be helped instead of avoided, we may benefit from slight stressors. Although, we haven’t and therefore one is often impacted by the negative effects of stress far more than the positive impacts gained from success.
