Effect of Stress on Mental Health

Abstract

Introduction: Stress can come from any event that makes an individual feel anxious, frustrated, depressed due to the inability to cope with the situation. Stress is caused due to various stressors stimulating responses in the individual's body. The stressors usually increase the potential of the individual to face a stressful situation and overcome it however if the stressors are constantly triggered they can cause physiological damage to the individual. Physiological impact includes high blood pressure, rapid breathing, aches and pains, in severe cases it can also lead to stroke. Stressors can also impact an individual emotionally and mentally by causing insomnia, depression and anxiety. Mental health is the state of the overall well-being of an individual which helps them to overcome anxiety and stressful situations and thereby increases the productivity of the individuals in order to contribute to the society. It is important to maintain good mental health in order to keep the individual healthy. Aim: The study has been conducted to assess the overall mental health of the study population and thereby suggest ways in which we can deal with stress. Stress and anxiety can be managed by practising yoga, meditation, discussing problems with a counsellor or spending time with family and loved ones. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among the population with a sample size of 100. A self administered structured questionnaire was prepared based on the effect of stress on mental health. It was circulated to participants through an online platform (google form). The statistics were done using SPSS software, chi-square test effect of stress on mental health  was used to check the association and P value of 0.05 was said to be statistically significant. The pros of the survey is that individuals of different lifestyles and cultures were surveyed. This study was conducted among individuals of the age group 14-46 years. Simple random sampling method was the sampling method used to minimise the sampling bias. Results: The p value obtained from statistical data analysis was 0.02 which is statistically significant. The results revealed that most of the individuals of the study population had experienced stress in their life and some of them were already aware about the ways in which they could overcome stress. This study provided alternate ways to overcome stress and anxiety for individuals experiencing stress in their day to day lives.