Today, the term stress is used as a popular definition for a wide array of circumstances. There is no clear definition or diagnose, and even in scientific circles the definition is used to cover various meanings. When you talk about stress in everyday life as many different things, as everything from a normal feeling of being busy, to something that can make you seriously ill, it creates confusion and taboo.
Stress is a complex phenomenon that contains both a physiologic and psychologic component. One of Denmark’s leading stress experts, dr. Bo Netterstrøm defines stress as “A circumstance in the organism characterized by physiologic reactions with activation of the sympathetic nervous system, immune system, energy mobilization and mental activation as a cause of stress of mental, physical, chemical and biological strain”. Stress is described here as a reaction triggered in our body, when we are exposed to pressure, and it is important to understand that this pressure can be from mental, physical, chemical or biological strain.
