Stress has been defined as ‘the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressure or other types of demand placed on them’. (Finlay et al., 2010 page 141). It can affect everyone at some stage and is part of everyday life. Whilst moderate stress can help people react more quickly ‘prolonged or excessive levels give people no time to recover their strength, and this can lead to exhaustion, depression and physical illness.’ (Finlay et al., 2010 page 142). There are many factors that may contribute to stress and a variety of interventions that can tackle it. This essay is primarily concerned with debating the effectiveness of a stress management course as an intervention, and for illustration, I will be referring to the …show more content…
For a variety of reasons, Steve is suffering from high levels of stress and he has agreed to go on a stress management course. A stress management course is a psychological intervention at the level of the individual, designed to help Steve to reduce his stress. Both psychological and biological factors contribute to Steve’s stress at this level. Steve has a meticulous personality and he has got into the habit of working long hours to complete his work. He doesn’t feel that he has time to take lunch breaks or computer breaks. Steve worries a lot about the health of his father who suffers from Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), he is understandably concerned that he may have inherited a predisposition for CHD, which ‘is the single most common cause of premature death in the United Kingdom’ (DH, 2000 quoted in Finlay et al., 2010 page 50). Steve believes in the importance of regular exercise, which can play a part in significantly reducing CHD, but he has little opportunity to undertake any. (Finlay et al., …show more content…
Other interventions may need to be employed at this level; for example, given Steve’s possible predisposition for CHD, his doctor may intervene biologically to prescribe medication to help with his anxiety, and undertake to check his blood pressure regularly. In addition, as well as influences at the level of the individual, there are many influences at the level of the family, locality and the wider society, which must also be taken into account. (Finlay et al., 2010).
At the level of Steve’s family, his father instilled a hardworking ethic into him and Steve’s attitude to work has been influenced by this. In addition, Steve has two young children who make demands on his time and energy, his house requires a lot of alterations and DIY takes up much of Steve’s time. At family level, one possible intervention might be for Steve to spend less time on his DIY work enabling him to relax more in the evenings and at the weekends. (Finlay et al.,