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The dictionary defines stress as a constraining or impelling force, effort or demand upon physical or mental energy. A stressor is a person or situation that makes you become stressed.

We in the modern world are far more likely to suffer from the effects of stress than our ancestors were. Seventy percent of all illness is now directly attributed to stress. Modern society with its pressures, overcrowding, traffic congestion, noise, fears and general uncertainties regarding work, home and family life, tends to present situation upon situation in which the possibility of becoming stressed is ever present. Stress is an unavoidable part of modern life: everyone experiences stress and everyday stresses are not necessarily harmful.

In fact, stress is not always negative but can often be just stimulating enough to make life enjoyable, or at least interesting. If you want to compete and excel in sports, for example, you need stress to bring about the motivation to perform. Some people handle stress very well while others are more negatively influenced by it. It is the effect of long-term stress that can be positively harmful to our bodies.

It may seem strange that your body is capable of damaging itself at all, but this chapter will show you how the body responds to perceived threat, and how those responses can become harmful when they are not dealt with appropriately.