PSY 1102 Lecture Notes - Sympathetic Nervous System, Hans Selye, Immune System

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSY 1102
• Professor: all

Document Summary

Selye"s main point was that the body handles temporary stress well, but long- term stress can damage us. Adrenal glands sit on top of the kidneys, and release different hormones. Cortex hypothalamus spinal cord, sns . Three categories: catastrophes, significant life changes, daily hassles. If you leave to another country to escape, that"s double the stress. Significant life changes: getting married, divorced, losing a job, losing a loved one. Daily hassles: rush-hour traffic, aggravating roommates, long lines at the store, etc: the number of these you have are a better indicator of future health than significant life changes. Stress is the process of appraising and responding to a threatening or challenging event. It arises less of the events themselves, than from how we appraise them. Some short-lived stressors can have positive effects, mobilizing the immune system for fending off infections and healing wounds, or motivates us to conquer problems.