If Want to Do Well On Your Finals Then Don't Stress Out

Final exams have been stressing me out all week, so I read an article about the physiological stress responses of the body. The article says that the stress reposes are the body’s way to cope with the stress. However, after reading the article, I realized the stress responses are detrimental if the stress is caused by finals. The article says once your internal homeostasis, or Milieu Interior is disturbed, the stress responses are activated. The stress responses divert blood from less vital to more vital organs, increase heart rate, increase blood pressure, increase respiratory rate, breakdown of glycogen stores in the liver and muscle to get more glucose, and forms more glucose from non carbohydrate substances. In the brain, stress causes the release of hormones on the limbic system which causes mood swings, anxiety, and depression, and hormones are released on the frontal lobe which causes short term memory disturbances. Blood pressure and heart rate are increased because the release of adrenaline. The blood diversion from less vital organs causes poor digestion, dry throat and mouth, loose stool, and clammy skin. And to top it all off, the hormone cortisol, which is an immunosuppressant steroid, is released making it more likely for the body to get infected. Therefore, if you stress out about finals then you are going to be in a terrible mood, forget things you just studied, look horrible (due to the clammy skin), have to go to the bathroom all the time (due to the loose stood), and are more likely to get sick. Moral of the story is to not stress about finals.

Article: http://www.stressfocus.com/stress_focus_article/biological-effects-of-stress.htm