<p></p><h3><span>I. Stress</span></h3><p><i>Stress is a condition or feeling experienced when a person perceives that "demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize.</i>” (attributed to Richard S.Lazarus)<br></p><p>Stress&nbsp;is a situation that triggers a particular biological response. When you perceive a threat or a major challenge, chemicals and hormones surge throughout your body.&nbsp;<span>Stress can trigger your fight-or-flight response in order to fight the stressor or run away from it. Typically, after the response occurs, your body should relax. Too much constant stress can have negative effects on your long-term health.&nbsp;Stress isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s what helped our hunter-gatherer ancestors survive, and it’s just as important in today’s world. It can be healthy when it helps you avoid an accident, meet a tight deadline, or keep your wits about you amid chaos.&nbsp;But stress should be temporary. Once you’ve passed the fight-or-flight moment, your heart rate and breathing should slow down and your muscles should relax. In a short time, your body should return to its natural state without any lasting negative effects.</span><br></p><p><span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Stress%20Bellcurve.png" alt="Stress Bell Curve" width="700" height="345"><br></span></p><h4><span>Good Stress vs. Bad Stress</span></h4><p><span><b>Eustress</b>&nbsp;(acute, physiologically adaptive):&nbsp;</span><span>Increased delayed type hypersensitivity, associated with acute spikes in corticosterone and decreased leukocytes in blood (by movement to skin)&nbsp;</span></p><p><span><b>Distress</b>&nbsp;(chronic, physiologically maladaptive):&nbsp;</span><span>Decreased delayed type hypersensitivity, associated with chronically increased basal corticosterone and less decrease in blood leukocytes (i.e., less movement of leukocytes to skin).</span></p><p><span><br></span></p><h4>According to American Psychological Association (APA), there are 3 different types stress:</h4><p></p><ul><li><b>Acute stress:&nbsp;</b></li><ul><li><span><span>Acute stress happens to everyone. It’s the body’s immediate reaction to a new and challenging situation. It’s the kind of stress you might feel when you narrowly escape a car accident.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><span>Acute stress can also come out of something that you actually enjoy. It’s the somewhat-frightening, yet thrilling feeling you get on a roller coaster or when skiing down a steep mountain slope.&nbsp;</span><span>These incidents of acute stress don’t normally do you any harm. They might even be good for you. Stressful situations give your body and brain practice in developing the best response to future stressful situations.&nbsp;</span><span>Once the danger passes, your body systems should return to normal.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></span><span>Severe acute stress</span><span>&nbsp;is a different story. This kind of stress, such as when you’ve faced a life-threatening situation, can lead to&nbsp;</span><span>post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)</span><span>&nbsp;or other mental health problems.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</span></li></ul><li><b><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/stress.jpg" alt="stress" width="600" height="336" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_right"><b>Episodic acute stress</b></b></li></ul><div><p><span>Episodic acute stress is when you have frequent episodes of acute stress.&nbsp;</span><span>This might happen if you’re often anxious and worried about things you suspect may happen. You might feel that your life is chaotic and you seemingly go from one crisis to the next.&nbsp;</span><span>Certain professions, such as law enforcement or firefighters, might also lead to frequent high-stress situations.&nbsp;</span><span>As with severe acute stress, episodic acute stress can affect your physical health and mental well-being.</span></p></div><p></p><ul><li><b>Chronic stress</b></li></ul><div><span>When you have high-stress levels for an extended period of time, you have chronic stress. Long-term stress like this can have a negative impact on your health. It may contribute to:&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/anxiety/effects-on-body">anxiety</a><span>,&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-disease/causes-risks">cardiovascular disease</a><span>,&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/depression">depression</a><span>,&nbsp;</span><span>high blood pressure, and&nbsp;</span><span>a weakened immune system.&nbsp;</span><span>Chronic stress can also lead to frequent ailments such as headaches, an upset stomach, and sleep difficulties.&nbsp;</span></div><b><p></p></b><b><br></b><p><br></p><p></p><p></p><h4>Classical View of the Autonomic Nervous System&nbsp;</h4><p></p><ul><li><u><b>Parasympathetic: Rest and Restoration (also known as Rest and Digest)</b></u></li><ul><li>Integrates the ‘rest &amp; recreation’ (feed &amp; breed) response</li><li>Release of acetylcholine&nbsp;</li><li>Decreased heart rate &amp; blood pressure&nbsp;</li><li>Decreased respiratory rate and bronchial constriction&nbsp;</li><li>Decreased glycogen to glucose in liver&nbsp;</li><li>Pupillary constriction</li><li><span>Increased GI activity&nbsp;</span></li></ul></ul><ul><li><b><u>Sympathetic: Fight or flight</u></b><br></li><ul><li>Integrates the ʻfight or flightʼ response&nbsp;</li><li>Release of norepinephrine &amp; epinephrine&nbsp;</li><li>Increased heart rate &amp; blood pressure&nbsp;</li><li>Increased respiratory rate and bronchial dilation&nbsp;</li><li>Increased glycogen to glucose in liver&nbsp;</li><li>Increased pupil diameter&nbsp;</li><li>Decreased GI activity</li></ul></ul><p></p><p></p><p><br></p><h4>The Biology of Stress<img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/adrenaline.png" alt="qdrenaline" width="500" height="700" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_right"></h4><p></p><p>When you sense danger, the&nbsp;hypothalamus&nbsp;at the base of your brain reacts. It sends nerve and hormone signals to your&nbsp;adrenal glands, which release an abundance of hormones.</p><p>These hormones are nature’s way of preparing you to face danger and increase your chances of survival.</p><p><br></p><h4><b>Adrenaline</b></h4><p>One of these hormones is&nbsp;<u><b>adrenaline</b></u>. You might also know it as&nbsp;<u>epinephrine</u>, or the fight-or-flight hormone. In rapid fashion, adrenaline works to:</p><ul><li>increase your heartbeat</li><li>increase your breathing rate</li><li>make it easier for your muscles to use&nbsp;glucose</li><li>contract blood vessels so blood is directed to the muscles</li><li>stimulate perspiration</li><li>inhibit&nbsp;insulin&nbsp;production</li></ul><p>While this is helpful in the moment, frequent adrenaline surges can lead to:</p><ul><li>damaged blood vessels</li><li>high blood pressure, or hypertension</li><li>higher risk of&nbsp;heart attack&nbsp;and&nbsp;stroke</li><li>headaches</li><li>anxiety</li><li>insomnia</li><li>weight gain</li></ul><p><br></p><h4><b>Cortisol</b></h4><p></p><p>As the main stress hormone,&nbsp;<b>cortisol</b>&nbsp;plays an essential role in stressful situations. Among its functions are:</p><ul><li>raising the amount of glucose in your bloodstream<img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Cortisol.jpg" alt="Cortisol" width="700" height="701" class="atto_image_button_right"></li><li>helping the brain use glucose more effectively</li><li>raising the accessibility of substances that help with tissue repair</li><li>restraining functions that are nonessential in a life-threatening situation</li><li>altering immune system response</li><li>dampening the reproductive system and growth process</li><li>affecting parts of the brain that control fear, motivation, and mood</li></ul><p>All this helps you deal more effectively with a high-stress situation. It’s a normal process and crucial to human survival.</p><p>But if your cortisol levels stay high for too long, it has a negative impact on your health. It can contribute to:</p><ul><li>weight gain</li><li>high blood pressure</li><li>sleep problems</li><li>lack of energy</li><li>type 2 diabetes</li><li>osteoporosis</li><li>mental cloudiness (brain fog) and memory problems</li><li>a weakened immune system, leaving you more vulnerable to infections</li></ul><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(55, 71, 79); font-family: &quot;Open Sans&quot;; font-size: 2.143rem;">Attention</span><br></p><p>Attention can generally be defined as the ability to produce, select, manage and maintain sufficient stimulation at a specific amount of time to process any kind of information. It takes place on the cognitive level and has different types.&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 1rem;">Attention is the key to achieve optimum functionality in our lives. The way to do this is to parse the factors or stimuli we encounter as relevant or irrelevant. Actually, this is when we make the most basic choices regarding the topics we are interested in or not.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;">The brain is limited in its capacity to process all sensory stimuli present in the physical world at any point in time and relies instead on the cognitive process of attention to focus neural resources according to the contingencies of the moment. Attention can be categorized into two distinct functions: <b>bottom-up attention</b>, referring to attentional guidance purely by externally driven factors to stimuli that are salient because of their inherent properties relative to the background; and<b> top-down attention</b>, referring to internal guidance of attention based on prior knowledge, willful plans, and current goals.&nbsp;</span><br></p><p><span style=""><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Top%20Down%20and%20Bottom%20Up.png" alt="top down bottom up" width="600" height="479" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left" style="text-align: center;"></span></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;">Over the past few years, insights on the neural circuits and mechanisms of bottom-up and top-down attention have been gained through neurophysiological experiments. Attention affects the mean neuronal firing rate as well as its variability and correlation across neurons. Although distinct processes mediate the guidance of attention based on bottom-up and top-down factors, a common neural apparatus, the frontoparietal network, is essential in both types of attentional processes.</span></p><h3><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>General View of Attention Networks</b></span></h3><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Attention%20Networks.jpg" alt="Attention Networks" width="512" height="425" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left">There are many neural nodes and networks involved in the attention process, which are too many and too complex to list here. This diagram to the left gives a depiction of the networks of attention and te&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><br></span></p><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4><br></h4><h4>Determining Factors That Influence the Functioning of Attention</h4><p>Attention is not a one-way process. There are a number of factors for a stimulus to attract our attention. Only a stimulus based on these factors triggers our cognitive functions and can initiate cognitive processing.</p><p>It is possible to examine these factors that attract our attention and maintain focus in two main groups:</p><h5>1.&nbsp;<b>Internal Factors</b></h5><p>These determinants are personal because they depend on the individual's own cognitive resources and brain functions. Some of them can be listed as follows:</p><ul><li>Mental condition</li><li>Needs</li><li>Emotions</li><li>Mindset</li><li>Interests</li><li>Motivation</li><li>Physical state</li></ul><h5>2.&nbsp;<b>External Factors</b></h5><p>These determinants are usually based on the characteristics of the stimuli or come from our surroundings. Some of them can be listed as follows:</p><ul><li>Intensity</li><li>Uniqueness</li><li>Size</li><li>Color</li><li>Emotional Burden</li><li>Contrast</li></ul><span style="font-size: 1rem;">There are Four Kinds of Attention<br></span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Attention.png" alt="Attention" width="700" height="413" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_middle" style="font-size: 1rem; text-align: center;"><br><p></p><h3>Selected Attention</h3><p>We are using selected attention al of the time.&nbsp;This is the processes that&nbsp;<b>allow an individual to select and focus on particular input</b>&nbsp;for further processing while simultaneously suppressing irrelevant or distracting information.<img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/selective%20attention.jpg" alt="Selective attention" width="300" height="168" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"></p><p><br></p><h3><br></h3><h3><br></h3><h3><br></h3><h3>Divided Attention</h3><p>We use divided attention while simultaneously paying attention to two or more tasks. This ability is also called multitasking. Divided attention uses mental focus on a very large scale. Nonetheless, this does not allow the brain to fully focus on any task. Therefore, this type of attention does not last for long.<img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/mom.jpg" alt="mom" width="300" height="168" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"></p><br><p></p><br><br><br><br><h3><br></h3><h3>Alternating Attention</h3><p>Alternating attention is the ability to change the focus of your attention and switch between different tasks. In this type of attention, mental flexibility is required so that one task does not limit the performance of others.<img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/cooking.jpg" alt="cooking" width="265" height="190" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"></p><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><h3>Sustained Attention</h3><p>We often use sustained attention for tasks that take a long time or require intense focus. This type of attention allows one to consistently perform a certain mental activity. For example, when children study for an exam, they need to read and acquire the information in a textbook for several hours.</p><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Focus.jpg" alt="Focus" width="321" height="157" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"><br><br><br><br><p></p>