General Adaption Model / Stress Response

The General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) is a chronic stress theory, and particularly relevant to hypotherapy when thinking about stress and its related disorders. Have you ever noticed that when you have a break from work or do something relaxing, you tend to become ill? As well as being a nuisance, this is also a sign that you are under chronic stress.

When we become stressed the body releases stress hormones, including that most famous of hormones, adrenaline, but also chemicals called glucocorticoids. These have the great effect of increasing our blood pressure and sugar levels and giving us the ability to respond to dangerous stimuli. The problem is that the stress reposnse is only supposed to happen in the short term and not over the course of weeks, months and years which is becoming more common in modern, permanently stressed individuals.

Over time, the body becomes used to these hormones and their presence becomes the norm so we feel no effect. This results in the degradation of our immune system and the progressive damage of our cardiovascular system. Thus when the hormones are removed we are more likely to contract diseases and find them difficult to fight.

Interestingly, the stress response was evolved to deal with short term, immediate danger, like being eaten by a lion but while as the human mind has developed the stress response has remained the same. This has meant that stress hormones can be released in response to events that do not exist or that pose no real danger, such as public speaking or going on a first date thus making it more likely that as the stressful stimuli or a human's rumination on future events increases, so does the amount of stress hormones released.

Using hypnotherapy, we can not only reduce the perceived level of stress from events, but also encourage the mind to focus on the present and so realeasing it from worries and concerns about future events.

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