Eustress Examples

When it comes to stress, most of us only have negative connotations with the idea. However, there exists a type of stress that has no negative effects on the body. Instead of causing emotional distress or any other type of discomfort, this stress, known as eustress has more positive effects. Eustress symptoms are surprisingly positive and opposite of something like psycho-spiritual stress as they motivate people to progress in the activity or event that may seem absorbing and exhausting at the moment but provide a great amount of satisfaction in the larger picture. Hans Selye was responsible for coining the term after observing the very obvious existence of eustress symptoms in most, if not all human beings.

Understanding Eustress

The best way to understand eustress symptoms is to take a closer look at stress or irritability as a contradicting condition. There are many stressful situations in life that cause anxiety, depression and even apathy. Similarly, there are several eustress situations in life that are extremely necessary to facilitate a state of wellbeing, both emotional and physical. These situations are what provide us with a purpose to live on and perform our tasks taking them as exciting challenges instead of something that wears us down.

Physical Exercise

One of the most common eustress examples is that of physical exercise. Taking part in physical activity such as sports, walking, swimming, running etc. puts the muscles, heart and lungs through the required amount of stress to strengthen them in the long run. Additionally, these activities also facilitate the release of endorphins which promote a feeling of well-being and satisfaction in a human being.

College Experience

Another great one of eustress examples is that of going through the experience of college. One learns to deal with peer pressure, social expectations and several other stressors apart from facing the apparent challenge of studying and scoring well. All these stressing factors may also seem to run down an individual when he/she is going through it but the outcome of this experience are more positive than negative. An individual leaves college feeling more self-assured and confident of one’s abilities. This confidence and high self-worth is a result of nothing but continuous eustress the individual goes through at every stage of college.

Accomplishments

Other common eustress examples include striving towards the accomplishment of any challenge, entering a competition and roughing it out to win, watching a horror movie for the thrill of it, enjoying a roller coaster ride, the joy felt by a mother on the birth of a baby and so on.

Long Term or Short Term Eustress

The effects of eustress range from short term to long term benefits. One of the best short term benefits of eustress is that it provides the necessary motivation to carry on with a certain task though it may seem overly taxing at the moment. In long term, this kind of positive stress increases in individuals confidence, self-worth, emotional balance and a sense of desirability which can be quite important for building a positive and functional person. The best thing about positive stress is that it also helps people avoid many psychological as well as physical ailments in the long run.