EQ Weather Report

What is stress?

We hear this word being tossed about, but what exactly is stress? Very simply, stress is our body's reaction to a demand for a change. This demand can be a reaction to a situation or event. Demands on our system can take several forms -- physical, emotional, or mental. 

Stress has gotten a bad rap. We hear people talk about being "stressed out" by an offensive co-worker, an overbearing family member, dealing with an overflowing email box, or being overwhelmed by too much homework. Today, the word "stress" is mainly used as an adjective to describe negative or unpleasant events. But, if we go back to the original definition of stress by Hans Selye in 1936, stress is just a reaction to a demand...any demand.

How does it work?

So, what's the point of redefining stress to rebrand its image? Because if we want to perform at our best as humans, some stress is necessary and inevitable. Let's take wanting to do well on an upcoming test as an example. Some...