You might be surprised to hear that some stress is actually considered “good stress.”
We rarely hear people say, “I’m really feeling stressed.
Isn’t that great?”
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While bad stress can harm your health, good stress can promote well-being.
Changing your perception of stress can help.
So can adding positive activities to promote eustress (aka, the good kind of stress).
Together, these strategies help you create a healthy balance in your life.
What Is Good Stress?
Our pulse quickens and our hormones surge, but there is no threat or fear.
There are many triggers for this good stress, and it keeps us feeling alive and excited about life.
A certain level of stress helps keep your mind and body alert and ready to respond.
It can be motivating and help you perform your best.
According toYerkes-Dodson law, stress can improve performance–at least, up to a certain point.
Once you pass that point, stress can take a toll on your ability to perform well.
Good Stress vs. Bad Stress
Another pop in of stress is acute stress.
It comes from quick surprises that need a response.
Acute stress triggers the body’sstress responseas well, but the triggers aren’t always happy and exciting.
This is what we normally think of as “stress” (or “bad stress”).
Acute stress in itself doesn’t take a heavy toll if we find ways to relax quickly.
Chronic stressis another form of bad stress.
It pops up if we repeatedly face stressors that take a heavy toll and feel inescapable.
Astressful jobor an unhappy home life can bring chronic stress.
This is what we normally think of asserious stress.
How Can Good Stress Be Beneficial?
How exactly can stress be helpful?
When you feel excited about something, your more likely to feel alert and motivated.
It can improve your mood and help you perform your best.
But those aren’t the only benefits.
Examples of Good Stress
Yes, you could add good stress to your life!
Ideally, youchoose activitiesandset goalsthat make you feel good, happy, and excited.
Do you feel excited?
Is it a “want to,” or a “have to”?
Sometimes these changes might not start off great, however.
Losing your job or ending a relationship can create bad stress.
Whether something counts as good stress or bad stress can also vary from one person to the next.
Something that one person experiences in a positive way might trigger distress in someone else.
(Thrill seekersknow this firsthand.)
Be in tune with yourself and acknowledge when you’ve had too much.
This shift can change your experience of stress.
The body reacts strongly toperceivedthreats.
If you don’t perceive something as a threat, there is generally no threat-based stress response.
