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 Stress - so you recognize it 
 The term Stress was characterized 1936 for the first time, from the in Vienna born canadian Medicine Prof. Hans Selye. Stress means literal translated Pressure, it is also used outside of the Medicine and has its roots actually from the Material Research. There they understand Stress, Tension in sense of the Pressure of a Material. So we can, in relation of our body, speak from a Pressure, who once more and even less burdens on us.
If this Pressure actual harms,
depends on two factors:
1) How high is this pressure?
2) How good can the body deal with this pressure?
To be stressed is the result of the own judgment
So the stress model of Richard Lazarus (1974) assumes that stress is very closely linked to judgement. We judge the first step, if a new situation is a threat and if we can do with our existing resources. What we can measure and perceive, is therefore less of the stress itself, but rather the reaction to our body. Put simply, our body reacts to stress, if we consider the demands placed on us, as excessive rate. The saying: "you do not have stress, you make it yourself!" is in some way confirmed. Lazarus hence two different types of stress, namely the good stress that we perceive as a challenge (eustress) and bad stress, the us against supposedly insurmountable obstacles presents (distress). This distinction is still active today.
Figure 1: Origin of stress according to Lazarus (1974)
Stressors are varied
Besides pregnancy, catastrophes, war, divorce, banking crisis, existence fears or death of family members are not at last daily situations, which let react our body to stress. Aggresive behavior in street-traffic (roundabout traffic), traffic jam, dissatisfaction in the job or fight in the family accumulate by concerned to chronic stress. Frequently staggers from one stressful situation to the next and the body has too little time with the stressor to be ready (coping). If the expectations in the profession from colleagues and superiors are too high, so that the twelve-our-work is not sufficient to satisfy all these requirements, should the body alone is under continuous tension. Then stress falls on fertile ground and the body is the sign of alarm.
During stress, the signs of alarm are there
These alarms were considered evolutionarily survival, because only then could the human being in its full emergency reserves. The feeling of being stressed out to be sure everyone has experienced: We are not sleepy in the morning and sit relaxed down in the car, mainly to major clients to present a concept. The certainty, to be well in time, makes us drive relaxed. A sudden onset snow makes the roads virtually impassable, and a mile-long traffic jam makes us constantly go against the clock. Then we notice, that most important documents we have forgotten. "What should I do? What if I come too late?", are the questions that we shoot through the head. Rapid heart rate and blood pressure rises and we begin to sweat. The intermediate brain cause the involuntary release of stress hormones and our vegetative nervous system switches the burden on internal organs.
Permanent stress makes sick
Does it make us sick, if we argue with ones partner or come too late for a appointment? Certainly not, because much more is the accumulation of such stressors. The body is permanently on alert and pours out his stress hormones. Even after work, we are still up internally, irritable and listless. The late complications are also versatile as serious. Stress leads to burn-out and depression, increased susceptibility to infection and represents one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular disease. As a Swedish research group at more than 13,000 people could show, chronic psychological stress leads to diseases of the cardiovascular system, also independent of other risk factors such as high blood pressure and assessment (Ohlin B, Nilsson PM, Nilsson JA, Berglund G. Chronic psychosocial stress predicts long-term cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in middle-aged men. Eur Heart J. 2004 May; 25 (10) :867-73.).
Stress measurement at the heart
Our heart is suffering not only under stress, it also shows it to us. Unfortunately, cardiac stress is not necessarily noticeable, such as pain or other symptoms perceptible, but only upon closer inspection by the doctor. A millisecond accurate analysis of the shock sequence can be a statement about the heart rate variability (HRV) to. As Figure shows, reflects the current balance using the internal variability of the heart beats resist. A healthy heart unloaded permanently changed its frequency, and thus adapts itself to internal fluctuations such as Blood pressure and respiration as well as to external stimuli such as temperature and noise on. Under physical and psychological distress turns our vegetative balance of stress and relaxation on the variability of heart beats decreases. As numerous scientific studies to show HRV, chronic stress leads to a lasting decrease in the beat-to-beat fluctuations in heart rhythm and is therefore measurable. A measurement and evaluation of HRV by the doctor helps to stress as a risk factor early on to recognize and fight before the heart is injured.
Variations in heart rhythm, shows the current stress
Stress Measurement in the doctor's office
 There are different systems, to measure the heart rate variability (HRV). For example, there are athletes from the company polar pulse meters, the current concept of stress into account. Watches with OwnZone® technology is calculated for each session a new Pulse, leaving the current influence HRV. When the HRV is reduced, then the athlete looks at his clock, that the training zones are correspondingly lower, in order to prevent an overload effect. For the first time it was used in space medicine, when the first flights of the person in space have begun. Then it was important to receive the maximum information of body functional state, using minimum of data volume transmitted from space. As it is known, in time of Yuri Gagarin flight only electrocardiogram and breath were transferred to the Earth. Therefore was resolved to try to extract maximum of information from records of pulse and that was possible on the basis of study of fluctuations of RR-intervals in electrocardiogram. Now, it corresponds to HRV analysis.
For the detailed stress measurements at the doctor is available in Russia since 2001, a system called KARDiVAR. While the physician ECG check, be at the same time the stress values determined. After the examination, the patient receives a colored portrait of the heart and may even determine whether variations in the ECG is available and whether his heart is stressful (see picture). The heart portrait shows an inconspicuous ECG of a non-stressful and shows red and yellow colors at the signal-portrait, that the stress is very high and the EKG also significant deviation.
Low stress and high stress levels in the juxtaposition
The electro-cardiogram-analysis is since 1 January 2009 in Germany no longer payed by the health insurance!
Chronic effects: Alarm in Head and Limbs - DID YOU KNOW?
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