How to increase (develop) stress resistance: exercises, development

Often, due to the accelerated pace of life, the human nervous system very quickly gets tired and exhausted. As a result, stress arises, which negatively affects the ability to correctly and objectively perceive the world around us. You can find a lot of advice on how to increase stress resistance on the Internet. But not all of them will really help strengthen the nervous system.

First, let's figure out why overvoltage resistance is needed in general and what its main signs are. This will help you better understand the principle of developing the necessary qualities of the body. And by understanding the principles, it is very easy to learn and absorb useful information.

Why do you need stress resistance?

The body's resistance to stress is a useful protective function that allows it to adapt to external stimuli or ignore them. In other words, it is what gives you the ability to remain calm in any situation.

The ability to always remain calm and balanced is the main sign of a well-developed defense against shocks. Thanks to it, the wear and tear of nerve nodes slows down significantly. As a result, you will achieve much more if you are not distracted by any minor trouble.

How to develop stress resistance: 10 tips

Good endurance and the ability to control yourself are useful in any situation. In particular, stress-resistant employees move up the career ladder faster, and in some types of activities it is completely impossible to do without this trait. And in everyday life, calm and balanced people are usually more attractive to others.

Stress has a destructive effect on the human psyche, and with prolonged exposure it can cause serious harm even to physical health. This effect accumulates over the years, gradually worsening well-being, reducing immunity and weakening all body systems. Therefore, stress resistance is a quality necessary for everyone who wants to maintain mental and physical health for as long as possible.

The following recommendations will help you develop stress resistance:

Monitor the quality and duration of your sleep. Poor quality sleep depletes the nervous system. In the modern world, many people sleep 5-6 hours a day, trying to save a couple of hours. This slowly but surely destroys the nervous system. Therefore, the first thing you need to do to increase stress resistance is to start monitoring the quality of your sleep and sleep at least 7 hours a day.

Signs of stress

Stress hits each of us sooner or later. You need to know what signs to use to determine that the level of bad influence is high enough.

Increased irritability. You are angry and more nervous than usual.
Confusion and inattention. Susceptibility results in the inability to collect thoughts and quickly react to changes in situation or circumstances.
Fatigue. For no apparent reason, you want to close yourself off from the whole world and just go to bed.
Aggression. You react sharply to every word said to you. Moreover, such a reaction occurs almost unnoticed by you, at the subconscious level.
Impressionability. Yes, succumbing to the influence of stress, some people become too susceptible to everything that surrounds them.

Typology of stress resistance

There are four types of stress resistance, each of which is distinguished by its characteristic reactions of the body to stress factors. Based on these types, there are four categories of people, using the example of which it will be very convenient to describe the indicators of stress resistance:

Stress-resistant people. For such people, any unexpected event turns out to be stressful. Comfort for them lies in regularity and stability, as few out-of-the-ordinary situations as possible. And when reacting to stress, people with this type of stress tolerance become confused and may behave inappropriately.
Stressed people. People with this type of stress tolerance are adapted to slow and gradual changes, they adapt to them without problems. However, sudden changes frighten them, confuse their thinking, unsettle them, and plunge them into depression.
Stress-inhibited people. People in this category include active individuals who calmly perceive sudden changes. They are able to instantly adapt to almost any changes, reacting optimally and quickly. The nervous system of stress-inhibited people is very resilient and can withstand heavy loads.
Stress-resistant people. Personalities of the fourth type have a psyche that is almost impossible to destroy. They are accustomed to life in a fast pace, and stability and regularity cause them rejection and even a hint of arrogance. These people can live in conditions of constant stress without harming themselves.

This or that type of stress resistance depends on various external factors, personal characteristics of a person, life experience and environment. Subsequently, it becomes an integral part of the personality, but this does not mean that it is not amenable to change. Any person can, even if not replace an ineffective type of stress resistance, still “pump up” it to an acceptable level.

Having done some work on himself, a person receives a number of benefits that play an important role in his life and can influence many areas of his life, from self-perception to achieving high results in his personal, everyday and professional life.

Types of stress

In general, stress is divided into two types: positive and negative. Positive causes pleasant shocks. Positive emotions prevail here. Such a shock is sometimes beneficial for the body, as it activates the production of beneficial hormones.

Negative stress or distress

- This is an extremely unpleasant phenomenon that destroys the normal state of the psyche. It is divided into two subgroups, manifesting themselves differently:

Spicy. When a sudden stimulus threatens our usual state. Reactions to any factor are different. Evasion, running away from the cause, or defense. In both cases, the body will need some time to restore its internal balance.
Chronic. Constantly being in a stressful environment leads to the fact that the daily influence of negativity suppresses all attempts of the subconscious to protect itself from it.

Methods for increasing stress resistance

One of the most interesting things about stress tolerance is that it can be trained and made better. And all that is required is to master several effective methods of increasing it. Next, we will talk about the most, in our opinion, simple, but at the same time very effective:

Relaxation. It is impossible to become a stress-resistant person without knowing how to relax. Various exercises to relieve emotional and muscle tension are great for mastering the skill of relaxation, getting rid of tension, unloading the nervous system, and developing positive thinking. Master these skills to better cope with the pressure of circumstances.
Breath. It is the basis of life, and this is connected not only with physiology, but also with the emotional sphere. Today you can find special exercises for proper breathing, with the help of which you can learn to change your emotional state, tune in to productive work, and even improve the skill of making the right decisions.
Physical exercise. Along with excess physical energy, excess mental energy is always released. That is why sports and active physical labor are great for relieving tension and preventing stress. However, moderation is extremely important here, because... otherwise, you can achieve even more stress, which has no benefit.
Physiotherapy. This option is suitable in special cases - when you cannot cope with stress on your own. It involves visiting a psychologist or psychotherapist. Professional specialists with experience are able to identify the causes of stress, select the best ways to get rid of it and set the client up for fruitful work.
Pharmacology. Today, many tools have been developed to help combat stress and strengthen mental health. Many of them are actually effective, but it is very important not to self-medicate. If there is a need for medications, you must contact a specialist and consult. It is also important to consider contraindications.

The listed methods of increasing stress resistance give powerful results, but their use is, albeit small, but still a way out of the comfort zone. They require some changes in life, which are often associated with certain difficulties, in particular psychological ones.

Based on this, it makes sense to master simpler ways to increase stress resistance. They are much easier and more natural to implement in everyday life, and you don’t need to spend a lot of effort, energy and time on it. Let's talk about them in general terms:

Try to get full sleep and get enough sleep. Remember that the average person’s body needs 7 to 8 hours to recuperate. Combating stress with chronic lack of sleep is almost pointless, because... it negatively affects both the psyche and physical condition.
Follow the rules of proper nutrition. Vitamins and microelements supply the body with energy, strengthen the immune system, ensure good health, and make the psyche stronger. Food is the fuel of the body, and it must be of high quality.
Remember to rest. By rest we do not mean a two-week vacation every six months (by the way, you shouldn’t forget about that either), but daily breaks from work, weekly days off. During rest, you need to completely disconnect from problems, affairs and worries.
Find a hobby. If you have an activity for the soul (football, knitting, poetry, painting, etc.), it will be much easier for you to distract yourself from worries, relax and put your thoughts in order. The main rule is that a hobby should correspond to interests and bring pleasure.
Stop accumulating negativity and worries inside yourself. Negative emotions are a worm that gnaws at a person from the inside. When negative potential accumulates, it must immediately be thrown out or extinguished using the methods described above. An excess of such potential can lead to serious consequences.
Don't focus on problems. Scrolling them endlessly in your head does not lead to any positive changes. If the problem can be solved now, do it; if not, set aside some time to think about its solution. Learn to plan and distribute the load.
Cry if necessary. There is nothing shameful or shameful in tears, and accumulated emotions come out with them. In addition, tears contain a hormone that helps fight stress (for more interesting information on this topic, read our article “15 Vital Facts About Stress”).
Refocus on the positive. There will always be dark sides in life, you can’t escape them, but you have the opportunity to choose what to focus on. Try to see more positive things in life, and let problems be an opportunity to grow and develop.
Keep a diary. Write down the most vivid events (both good and bad) and your experiences in a notebook. This way, you will be able to gain a deeper understanding of what exactly is driving you crazy, and this will give you the opportunity to eliminate sources of stress and work on your reactions to stress factors.
Don't judge others. When communicating with people, take their position, try to understand why they behave in one way or another; develop empathy. Having a positive or neutral attitude towards people will make you more tolerant and stronger psychologically.
Analyze yourself. Identify your strengths and weaknesses, try to understand which personal qualities help and which hinder you in life. Having found the disadvantages, look for ways to change them or turn them into your advantages, because even this is possible for a person who seriously works on himself.
Ask for help. It is not necessary to consult with specialists, go to psychologists and spend time and money on this (and not everyone wants to pour out their soul to a stranger). Family and friends can often be excellent support and advice. Share your thoughts, worries and experiences with them.
Get tested. There are many variations of stress resistance tests on the Internet. They help you evaluate your current performance, understand which direction you should move in, and track your progress as you develop stress resistance in the future.
Sign up for our online program “Mental Self-Regulation”. After completing it, you will learn to manage your emotional states, including reactions to stress factors and psycho-emotional stimuli. All this will greatly increase your stress resistance.

These recommendations in practice also turn out to be very effective, but we must not forget that to increase stress resistance it is not enough to master one method or start applying one recommendation. Moreover, you cannot count on quick results, thinking that in a couple of days stress will stop affecting you.

This requires an integrated and competent approach. This means that, firstly, you need to put into practice everything that we said, secondly, do it constantly, and thirdly, understand that tangible success will come only with time. However, all this is quite easy if you have a truly strong desire to develop stress resistance.

In addition, we strongly recommend that you get acquainted with other methods of developing and increasing stress resistance, which we wrote about in the articles “Stress resistance. How to stay calm and productive" and "Preventing stress and developing stress resistance."

In conclusion, we will only add that stress does not need to be resisted. It just doesn't make sense. The main task is to learn to adapt to it without spending extra energy on it. The nervous system can be successfully trained, but it should be trained carefully and consistently. And you already know how this is done.

It is hardly possible to achieve a completely stress-free life, so we wish you more bright streaks and the ability to persevere through the dark ones!

We also recommend reading:

Storytelling
15 Vital Facts About Stress
Stress: is there any benefit from it and how to get it?
Stress and burnout: a large practical digest
Impact of stress on quality of life
Coping strategies as a way to deal with stress
Four types of stress
Workplace stress and stress management
Stress and psychology: how they are connected
Prevention of stress and development of stress resistance
How to cope with stress

Key words:1Psychoregulation

Stages of stress

The study of the nature of stress has shown that it goes through three phases in its development. Each of them poses a certain threat to the body. Therefore, you need to understand how each of the phases occurs in order to determine ways to combat them.

Anxiety. At this stage, increased production of adrenaline and norepinephrine begins. A person understands that he must somehow react to the current circumstances.
Resistance. In the second phase, the internal forces of the nervous system are mobilized. This practically does not affect physical health, but the person is constantly on edge, aggressive and excitable.
Exhaustion. The most dangerous phase occurs after prolonged exposure to the irritant. The body spends all its resources fighting irritants. As a result of such actions, depression, nervous breakdowns and apathy develop.

Benefits of Increased Resilience to Stress

Stress resistance refers to a whole range of qualities that help a person overcome negative conditions without succumbing to their influence, maintaining physical and mental health.

According to scientists, stress is a kind of training for the human psyche, so it can and should be present in our lives in doses. Thanks to stressful situations, hidden mechanisms are launched that allow us to quickly solve many problems that stimulate us to develop.

However, if a person regularly experiences negative stress, negative energy accumulates, which, in turn, can lead to mental disorders and health problems.

Developing stress tolerance is important for two reasons: it minimizes the negative effects of stress and it gives you opportunities for self-development.

Minimizing the negative effects of stress

During a strong emotional shock, the body produces cortisol, the so-called stress hormone. Its action can manifest itself in the form of tachycardia and arrhythmia, pressure surges, and migraines. The inability to withstand nervous shocks leads to regular overload of the body, which can ultimately lead to irreversible changes and significantly worsen health.

Psychologist B.B. Velichkovsky in his works revealed the relationship between the level of stress resistance and the functioning of all body systems. The scientist came to the conclusion that balanced people who calmly react to adverse circumstances are much less at risk of developing chronic diseases than nervous people. It has also been noted that people who are resistant to stressful situations are less likely to resort to unhealthy methods of suppressing emotions: smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc.

Providing opportunities for self-development

A high level of stress resistance gives a person a feeling of solid ground under his feet. He feels confident in himself, does not panic, looks at things soberly and solves problems as they arise. This approach helps to adequately communicate with your environment and gives impetus to professional and personal growth.

A person who overreacts to negative external factors can scare people away with his behavior, which can negatively affect all areas of his life, including his career.

Providing opportunities for self-development

Impact of stress on health

Frequent or constant exposure to an unpleasant and stressful environment leads to consequences at the physiological level. What will your body have to face due to constant stress?

Increasing glucose production to increase energy output leads to the development of diabetes.
Reduction of the thymus gland, which is responsible for the production of leukocytes, significantly weakens overall immunity.
Constant tension and contraction of muscles gradually leads to their destruction. The same applies to the tissues of internal organs.
Excessive expansion of capillaries often causes their ruptures. As a result, hematomas form and blood circulation is disrupted.
Metabolic disorders cause poisoning by toxins that are normally simply eliminated from the body.

Psychosomatic health also suffers, receiving a dose of negative influence:

Mood swings, outbursts of aggression,
Loss of interest in the outside world, apathy,
Sleep disturbance, anxiety,
Development of neuroses, frequent headaches,
Loss of energy, increased drowsiness,
Formation of depression.

Type of stress resistance

The ability to withstand external factors is individual for everyone. Scientists studying the nature of overvoltage conditionally divide people into four main types:

Stress-resistant.
Such people react sharply to any changes that do not correspond to the basic plan of action or the usual course of life. Critical situations cause them outbursts of emotions that are practically uncontrollable.
Stress trained.
Gradual changes are perceived by such people quite calmly. But sudden changes can cause depression and self-doubt. But over time, they develop a calmer reaction to negativity.
Stress-inhibitory.
Sudden and drastic changes in a negative direction cause increased activity in such people. They easily cope with unexpected problems. The gradual increase and course of stressful conditions can form chronic depression.
Stress-resistant.
This is the calmest and most stable person. Almost any life circumstances are perceived calmly. The ability to adequately think and assess a situation is very highly developed.

Classification of types

Increasing stress resistance is not always necessary. While studying how the brain transforms the information coming to it, scientists came to the conclusion that there are several typical behavioral lines.

Depending on how a person perceives and tolerates the negative impact of stressful situations, four categories of people are distinguished:

Stress-resistant.
Stress trained.
Stress-inhibitory.
Stress-resistant.

The first group includes people who cannot adapt to any changes in external conditions. They perceive any change in life as a reason for depression. A low level of stress tolerance is the main cause of excessive emotional arousal. People from this group cannot control their emotions and make decisions quickly and clearly

It is extremely important for them to cultivate stress resistance by turning to specialists for help.

Vicious circle of stress

Representatives of the second category calmly endure gradual changes. They tend to become depressed when there are global or sudden changes. For them, gaining experience is a fairly effective way to learn to react to stressful situations more calmly.

People who are classified by psychologists as stress-inhibiting individuals differ from others in their unchanged and fundamental life positions. Changes in the external environment do not cause an acute reaction in them. These people are ready for changes that come suddenly. Acute stress can make them leaders in problem solving.

Representatives of the fourth category practically do not need to train their resistance to stress. Stress-resistant people are not susceptible to any kind of psychological destruction. They are able to maintain their performance under any force majeure. Stress for them is exclusively insurmountable adversity.

A stress-resistant person experiences problems easily

How to test stress resistance

Testing a person's stress resistance is becoming increasingly fashionable in various interviews. To determine your level of preparation for changes, you should take a short test by answering questions. This will show your ability to cope with life's circumstances.

Another way to test your inner strength is to conduct a DNA test. Studying your genetic code will show how susceptible your body is to negative influences. Our center’s specialists will help you decipher the information received and give advice on how to increase your resistance to stress.

How to develop stress resistance

Comprehensive development of stress resistance skills helps not only protect your body, but also significantly increase your own efficiency. There are several effective methods that help to successfully strengthen protective functions.

Correct assessment of the situation. It is based on three simple questions: “How important is this to me?”, “Does this change my life?” and “Can I change something?” It is important to understand that some circumstances do not depend on ourselves, so they should not be taken too seriously.
Release of emotions. You can’t keep all the accumulated irritation inside yourself. Choose a method that will help you get rid of negativity and let off steam.
Attention to health. Any disease undermines the protective functions of the nervous system. It is important to carry out treatment on time, eat right and walk in the fresh air every day.

Exercises to increase stress resistance

There are techniques that will help you deal with stress and develop resistance to negative situations. For example:

Showing tolerance towards people - you must strive to find a compromise and understand that we are all different, everyone has their own opinion.
Develop in your professional field.
Perform relaxation exercises - do breathing exercises, spend time in meditation, yoga, take soothing baths, massage.
Both adults and children should have a hobby. It will help you forget about the everyday hustle and bustle, relax, and take your mind off the problem.
Alternate between different recreation options - play sports, but don’t forget about the intellectual load.
Analyze problem cases, work on mistakes - first mentally, and if the mistake happens again, you can correct it in reality.

Methods for increasing stress resistance

For those who are susceptible to excessive negativity in the workplace, the following basic techniques may be helpful:

Development of a priority policy. Do what’s important at the moment, don’t try to do everything at once.
Learn to say “no” when the number of assignments reaches a limit. You are not omnipotent, and there is nothing scary or bad about that.
Monitor the level of relations between you and your superiors. Don’t let yourself be bullied, but also don’t allow yourself to become familiar - corporate ethics has not yet been abolished.
You should not adhere to the opinions of your colleagues or boss when contradictory situations occur. Have your own opinion on everything.
If you don’t understand what is required of you, tell management so. A job done at random will not be good, and will definitely add stress.
Do breathing exercises, throw all the fuss out of your head and fill it with more pleasant thoughts.

Such methods will help calm the body so that it does not explode from accumulated emotions.

Psychological exercises

Effective methods for developing protection from negativity help you stay collected and calm in any situation. To protect against excess voltage surges, use a few tricks:

Leave the aggressor when you feel that his excitement has rubbed off on you.
Alone with yourself, take a few deep breaths.
Try to make yourself laugh.
Meditation will help stabilize your inner balance

A psychologist is not scary!

Contrary to popular belief, psychologists are not trying to force you to reveal your most terrible and shameful secrets. They help you find ways to solve problems that are deeply ingrained in your subconscious and give you the right advice. Remember: no one can force you to tell what you yourself do not want to reveal. A psychologist will help you determine why your level of stress resistance does not meet the desired level. Then together you will find a solution to this problem without further traumatizing your psyche.

Simple exercises

To strengthen the defense mechanisms of your subconscious, perform simple exercises daily:

Standing in front of the mirror, smile at yourself. There is no need to study your own reflection. After smiling, say a few compliments for yourself.
During the working day, give yourself 10 minutes several times to relax. Just sit and look out the window or wall. At the same time, try not to think about anything at all.
Use proper breathing techniques that are practiced in yoga. Breathe every night before going to bed.

If you feel that a stressful situation is inevitable, imagine yourself in armor or a tank. You need to mentally see yourself in shining armor or hidden in a reliable, impenetrable machine.