There are two types of stress that each person faces: distress and eustress. Distress is the “negative” stress, such as grieving the loss of a family member, losing a job or realizing you are late in submitting a project. Experiencing distress for a lengthy period of time is called chronic stress and can result in serious physical ailments, such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity.
Eustress is the “positive” stress that keeps us excited about life. Examples include graduation, promotions, getting married, having a child, etc. Riding a roller coaster or watching a suspenseful movie are also day-to-day examples of eustress. This positive stress gives us a feeling of fulfillment and vitality in our everyday lives. Without it, our lives would start to feel meaningless and we may start to feel depressed.
The difference between eustress and distress is how we conceptualize the event in our life. For example, if you are preparing for a move, thinking about the situation as overwhelming, scary or too much to handle, will make you more likely to feel anxious. Thus the move becomes a source of negative stress. However, if you see the move as an exciting challenge, the same stressor is more likely to make you feel invigorated, excited and looking forward to the change. This thought process will protect you from the damaging effects of negative stress.
Some stressful situations, such as the death of a loved one, understandably cannot be reinterpreted as positive stress and thus will be taxing on your body. However, with the presence of other positive stressors in your life, you can achieve a healthy balance that buffers against stress-related physical illnesses.
On a similar note, it is important not to minimize the emotions that you do feel. Being mindful of your reaction to situations can help to manage the negative stress and aid in changing your appraisal and thought process of the situation. For example, if the impending move is making you anxious, trying to suppress (or ignore) the anxiety will only make the anxiety and stress worse. However, if you take a minute to accept, nonjudgmentally, that you are feeling anxious without focusing on what you should be feeling, you will be able to step back and identify positive aspects of the move that might make you more excited.
Experiencing chronic negative stress is damaging as our bodies have not evolved to experience and handle the amount of stress that we put on it daily. However, our bodies are designed to use positive stress to counter the negative effects of chronic stress. If you find that more situations are causing you negative stress and anxiety rather than excitement and invigoration or if you are noticing symptoms of chronic stress, you may benefit from speaking with a professional to learn how to better manage your stress levels and symptoms.
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