{"id":9533,"date":"2025-03-01T13:56:01","date_gmt":"2025-03-01T18:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/stress\/"},"modified":"2025-03-02T00:25:13","modified_gmt":"2025-03-02T05:25:13","slug":"stress","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/dpc\/stress\/","title":{"rendered":"dpc\/stress ~  DPH Healthy Living Information: Stress  &#8211; Delaware Health and Social Services &#8211; State of Delaware"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-swiftype-index=\"true\">\n\n\n\n\n\n  <br>\n\n\n  \n\n\n\n\n\n  \n\n\n  <div class=\"container\" id=\"main_header\">\n\n\n    \n\n\n\n\n\n <!-- BEGIN readspeaker div -->\n\n\n    <div class=\"rs_skip rsbtn rs_preserve\" id=\"readspeaker_button1\">\n\n\n      <a accesskey=\"L\" class=\"rsbtn_play\" href=\"https:\/\/app-na.readspeaker.com\/cgi-bin\/rsent?customerid=7262&#038;lang=en_us&#038;readid=main_content&#038;url=https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/dpc\/stress.html\" title=\"Listen to this page using ReadSpeaker\">\n\n\n        <span class=\"rsbtn_left rsimg rspart\"><span class=\"rsbtn_text\"><span>Listen<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n\n\n        <span class=\"rsbtn_right rsimg rsplay rspart\"><\/span>\n\n\n      <\/a>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <!-- END readspeaker div -->\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n    \n\n\n    <header class=\"pull-left\">\n\n\n      <h1><!--[type=EDIT name=\"Page Title\"]-->Coping With Life&#8217;s Threats<!--[END]--><\/h1>\n\n\n    <\/header>\n\n\n    \n\n\n  <\/div><br>\n\n\n \n\n\n  <div class=\"container\">\n\n\n    <div class=\"row\">\n\n\n      <div class=\"col-md-3\" id=\"leftCol\">\n\n\n        <div class=\"panel-group\" id=\"accordion\">\n\n\n          <div class=\"panel sectionmenu_panel\">\n\n\n            <div class=\"panel-heading\">\n\n\n              <p class=\"panel-title\"><a class=\"agency_nav\" data-parent=\"#accordion\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" href=\"#collapseOne\"><strong><i class=\"fa fa-align-justify fa-fw\"><\/i> Public Health Menu<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n            <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n            <div class=\"panel-collapse collapse in\" id=\"collapseOne\">\n\n\n              <div class=\"panel-body\" id=\"clf_nav\">\n\n\n                  <ul class=\"nav nav-stacked nav-pills-clf\" id=\"agency_sidebar\">\n    <li><a href=\"\/dph\/\"><h2>Home <i class=\"fa fa-home fa-fw\"><\/i><\/h2><\/a><\/li>\n    <li class=\"toplevel\"><a data-parent=\"#agency_sidebar\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" href=\"#HomeMenu\"><h2>About <i class=\"fa fa-caret-right fa-fw\"><\/i><\/h2><\/a>\n      <ul class=\"panel-collapse collapse\" id=\"HomeMenu\">\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/about.html\">About DPH<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/sections.html\">Sections &#038; Programs<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/ofclocations.html\">Office Locations<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/contact.html\">Contact Info<\/a><\/li>\n      \n        <li><a href=\"\/calendars.html\" target=\"_blank\">Calendar<\/a><\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n    <\/li>\n    <li class=\"toplevel\"><a data-parent=\"#sidebar\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" href=\"#ServicesMenu\"><h2>Services <i class=\"fa fa-caret-right fa-fw\"><\/i><\/h2><\/a>\n      <ul class=\"panel-collapse collapse\" id=\"ServicesMenu\">\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/servicesaz.html\">A-Z Services<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/hsp\/environmental.html\">Air &#038; Water Quality<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/ss\/vitalstats.html\">Birth, Death, &#038; Marriage Records<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/clinics.html\">Clinics<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/healthdatastats.html\">Health Data &#038; Statistics<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/php\/emsps.html\">Emergency Preparedness<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/healthandwellness.html\">Health &#038; Wellness<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/hsp\/healthyhomes.html\">Healthy Homes<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/hsp\/healthywp.html\">Healthy Workplaces<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/lab\/labs.html\">Laboratory<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/hsp\/feir.html\">Restaurant Inspections<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/screen.html\">Screening and Testing<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/chca\/dphwichominf01.html\">WIC<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/servicesadd.html\">Additional Services<\/a><\/li><li>\n      <\/li><\/ul>\n    <\/li>\n    <li class=\"toplevel\"><a data-parent=\"#sidebar\" data-toggle=\"collapse\" href=\"#InformationMenu\"><h2>Information <i class=\"fa fa-caret-right fa-fw\"><\/i><\/h2><\/a>\n        <ul class=\"panel-collapse collapse\" id=\"InformationMenu\">\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/factsheetsaz.html\">A-Z Fact Sheets<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/pubreportsaz.html\">A-Z Publications &#038; Reports<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/diseasesandconditions.html\">Diseases &#038; Conditions<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/faq.html\">FAQ&#8217;s<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/php\/alerts.html\">Health Alerts<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/healthylifestyles.html\">Healthy Lifestyles<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/hipaa.html\">HIPAA<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/regs.html\">Regulations<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/forms.html\">Request Forms<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"\/dph\/links.html\">Links &#038; Resources<\/a><\/li>\n        <li><a href=\"http:\/\/delaware.gov\/help\/foia_request.shtml\">FOIA Request Form<\/a><\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n    <\/li>\n    <li><a id=\"SocialMenuHeader\"><h2>Connect <i class=\"fa fa-thumbs-o-up fa-fw\"><\/i><\/h2><\/a>\n      <ul id=\"SocialMenu\">\n        <li class=\"facebook\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DEPublicHealth\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Division of Public Health Facebook Page\"><i class=\"fa fa-facebook-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Facebook<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"twitter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Delaware_DHSS\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Delaware Health and Social Services Twitter Account\"><i class=\"fa fa-twitter-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Twitter<\/a><\/li>\n        <!-- <li class=\"googleplus\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-google-plus-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Google +<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"flickr\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-flickr fa-lg\"><\/i> Flickr<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"youtube\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-youtube-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Youtube<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"instagram\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-instagram fa-lg\"><\/i> Instagram<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"linkedin\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-linkedin-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Linkedin<\/a><\/li>\n        <li class=\"pinterest\"><a href=\"#\"><i class=\"fa fa-pinterest-square fa-lg\"><\/i> Pinterest<\/a><\/li> -->\n      <\/ul>\n    <\/li>\n  <\/ul>\n\n\n              <\/div>\n\n\n            <\/div>\n\n\n          <\/div>\n\n\n        <\/div><br>\n\n\n      <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n      <div class=\"col-md-9\" id=\"main_content\"> \n\n\n  <!--[type=HTMLEDIT name=\"Content\"]-->\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"text-center\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Title: Managing Your Stress\" class=\"img-thumbnail img-responsive\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/dph\/img\/stress_titlepic.jpg\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stress affects us all<\/strong>. Sometimes we have just a little stress. At other times we may have major or long-term stress. Some stress can be helpful, but excessive or long-term stress\u00a0may contribute to serious health problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Stress is usually caused by how we react to the people, events, and changes in our lives. We are living in a time of rapid technological, scientific, social, economic, and political change. We often don&#8217;t know how to cope with these changes. Learning effective stress management skills may be one of the most important things you can do for your health.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2>What Is Stress?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Photo: woman with stress headache\" class=\"pull-right img-thumbnail img-responsive\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/dph\/img\/stress_headache.gif\">Stress is your body&#8217;s <strong>natural way of defending itself<\/strong> from threats. Those threats may be real or imagined, physical or mental. Whenever you feel threatened, your body becomes keyed up to fight off or run away from the threat. Your brain triggers the release of several &#8220;stress hormones&#8221;\u2014such as cortisol and adrenaline\u2014which give you the extra strength you need to fight or run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>This body response is <strong>most helpful when threats are real or physical<\/strong>. We need the stress response to help us cope with real emergencies. The energy from stress also can help us in non-emergency situations if we channel the energy into positive activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>However, threats today are more often\u00a0mental than physical. We may feel unable or unwilling to take action. Sometimes we just have more stress than we can handle. To make matters worse, we may never have learned the skills we need to relax and unwind from the effects of a day&#8217;s stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>That&#8217;s when stress becomes a threat to our health.<\/strong> It&#8217;s like running a machine at full speed all day every day, without any service breaks. The excess wear and tear caused by constantly running a machine\u2014or our bodies\u2014at top speed can quickly lead to break-down or illness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>If you feel threatened all the time, and you haven&#8217;t learned how to cope, you may have <strong>chronic stress<\/strong>. Chronic (or constant) stress can <strong>weaken your body&#8217;s immune system, leading to frequent illness<\/strong>. Chemical changes in your body caused by the stress response can contribute to ulcers or colitis. Chronic stress may lead to chronically high blood pressure, called &#8220;hypertension&#8221;\u2014a leading cause of heart disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Symptoms of stress<\/strong> may include cold hands and feet, frequent headaches, nervousness, and muscle tension. When you&#8217;re under stress you may also notice you&#8217;re eating more, getting angry more often, or smoking or drinking more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2>What Causes Stress?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cartoon: Driver followed bypolice car with flashing lights\" class=\"pull-left img-thumbnail img-responsive\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/dph\/img\/stress_cartoon.gif\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>We actually cause much, if not most, of our own stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>We create stress for ourselves by the way we think about the changes and challenges in our lives. <strong>It is often our <em>perception<\/em> of events\u2014rather than the events themselves\u2014which\u00a0triggers our stress<\/strong>. If we think something or someone is threatening, we have a stress response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>For example, you may remember a time when a police car pulled up behind you with its lights flashing. Even if the police car passed you and went on to stop someone else, you probably felt some degree of stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>If we cause much of our own stress, then we also\u00a0have the ability to relieve or manage that stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>We can learn to see new situations\u00a0or changes in our lives as positive opportunities. People who are successful at managing stress are not afraid of change. They see change as a source for growth and creativity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re filled with fear, anger or hatred, that&#8217;s what will come out of you when you&#8217;re stressed. If you want a better response when you&#8217;re under stress, you need to practice filling your mind with positive thoughts, love, and a sense of adventure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2>What You Can Do<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<ul>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0<strong>Build resistance to stress by healthy eating and getting adequate <a href=\"getfit.html\">physical activity<\/a><\/strong>.<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Photo: woman relaxing\" class=\"pull-right img-thumbnail img-responsive\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/dph\/img\/stress_relaxing.gif\"><\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0<strong>Unwind from your stress by learning and practicing relaxation skills<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0<strong>Learn how to fight the causes of stress with good communication, planning, and time management skills.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0<strong>Visit our &#8220;<a href=\"stresstips.html\" title=\"stresstips\">Tips For Managing Your Stress&#8221;<\/a> page for more information about coping skills.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0<strong>Take a short quiz: <a href=\"stressquiz.html\" title=\"stressquiz\">&#8220;How Well Do You Manage Stress?&#8221;<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<h3>Links for Stress Management Information<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<ul>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0Deep Relaxation Techniques <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.helpguide.org\/articles\/stress\/relaxation-techniques-for-stress-relief.htm\">from the HelpGuide<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n <li>\u00a0Simple instructions for <strong><a href=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/dph\/pdf\/meditation_brochure.pdf\">meditation<\/a><\/strong> \u00a0[PDF]<\/li>\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p><br>\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p><p class=\"smalltext\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.adobe.com\/products\/acrobat\/readstep2.html\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Download Adobe Acrobat Reader\" height=\"21\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/dhss\/img\/getacro60.gif\" width=\"60\"><\/a> Please note: Some of the files available on this page are in Adobe PDF format which requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.  A free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader can be downloaded directly from <a href=\"http:\/\/www.adobe.com\/products\/acrobat\/readstep2.html\">Adobe <\/a>. If you are using an assistive technology unable to read Adobe PDF, please either view the corresponding text only version (if available) or visit Adobe&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/access.adobe.com\">Accessibility Tools page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n  <!--[END]-->\n\n\n  \n\n\n      <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><!-- \/container -->\n\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen Coping With Life&#8217;s Threats Public Health Menu Home About About DPH Sections &#038; Programs Office Locations Contact Info Calendar Services A-Z Services Air &#038; Water Quality Birth, Death, &#038; Marriage Records Clinics Health Data &#038; Statistics Emergency Preparedness Health &#038; Wellness Healthy Homes Healthy Workplaces Laboratory Restaurant Inspections Screening and Testing WIC Additional Services [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":9401,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-9533","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9533","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9533"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9533\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10772,"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9533\/revisions\/10772"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dhss.delaware.gov\/dph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9533"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}