HLTH 225 Introduction To Health Behaviors

Question Transactional Model Of Stress And Coping You will describe the concepts of the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping applied to your health behavior. Make a plan to manage stress and garner social support. In your own words, describe how stress affects health behavior in general. Define and apply each of the concepts in the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (i.e., primary appraisal, secondary appraisal, coping efforts [problem management, emotional regulation, and meaning-based coping], outcomes of coping/adaptation, dispositional coping styles [optimism, benefit finding, information seeking]. Describe your level of confidence in your ability to change your behavior. Chosen Behavior: Excessive Alcohol Consumption Goal: To Reduce Drinking To Recommended Amount For Women. Answer Transactional Model Of Stress And Coping Introduction Stress is the natural response exhibited by the human body during challenging situations or circumstances which are perceived to be harmful or threatening. While a certain amount of stress is required for everyday functioning and alertness, excessive stress can lead to harmful health consequences and performance of harmful behaviors. Hence, adequate management of stress is of utmost importance for ensuring positive health outcomes (de Frias & Whyne, 2015). The following paragraphs of this report aim to shed light on the harmful effects of stress in health and behavior and the usage of the transactional model of stress and coping for the purpose of reduction of harmful health behaviors. The chosen harmful health behavior is excessive alcohol consumption and the goal is to use transactional model to reduce this consumption to acceptable levels as per women. Discussion Effect Of Stress On Health Behavior During prolonged periods of lack of treatment, excessive stress can lead to detrimental symptoms such as loss of sleep, tiredness or fatigue, headaches, muscle spasms, gastrointestinal disorders, chest pains and tightening, difficulties in breathing and loss of sexual drive. Excessive stress also leads to detrimental emotional and cognitive changes such as constant feelings of anger and irritability, inability to concentrate, lack of motivation or optimism, depression and feelings of restlessness (Dhabhar 2014). Untreated stress further aggravates to performance of unhealthy behaviors such as frequent conflicts with friends and family, outbursts of irritability and anger, avoidance of social interactions and preference towards social isolation, excessive or lack of adequate food consumption and adherence to harmful activities such as tobacco smoking and alcohol or substance abuse (Schönfeld et al., 2016). Application Of Transactional Model The transactional model of stress and coping, was first formulated by Lazarus and Cohen in the year 1977, as a method of evaluation of the procedures outlining stress mitigation and management, through consideration of the interactions occurring between an individual and the changing environment surrounding him or her (Zimmer?Gembeck, 2016). Hence, considering the harmful health behavior of excessive alcohol consumption due to stress, the transactional model has been used for the purpose of reducing excessive alcohol consumption to recommended levels, with the help of the following steps (Glanz, 2015): Primary Appraisal This step involves accepting and evaluating that presence and magnitude of the stressor or stressful event which is causing harmful health behavior (Glanz, 2015). Hence, for the purpose of reducing stress-induced excessive alcohol consumption, primary appraisal will include evaluation of the stressors which lead to alcohol consumption. If these stressors are perceived negatively, there ma be feelings of threat or distress. Secondary Appraisal This step involves evaluating the magnitude with which the stressful event can be controlled with the help of available resources meant for coping (Glanz, 2015). Hence, for the reduction of alcohol consumption, usage of activities aimed at changing or modifying the stressful event and the distressing emotions associated with it, will lead to improved coping of distressing situations which lead to conductance of such harmful health behaviors. Coping Efforts As stated in the Transactional Model, this step involves the usage of strategies which will lead to mediation of the primary and secondary appraisal, resulting in coping of the stressful behavior which is leading to excessive alcohol consumption. These include various strategies such as problem management, emotional regulation and meaning based coping (Glanz, 2015). For the purpose of reducing harmful behaviors like excessive alcohol, a problem management coping strategy will be adopted. Problem Management is a type of coping strategy which aims to directly confront the problem or the stressful situation leading to the health behavior. Hence, for the purpose of reducing excessive alcohol consumption, a problem management coping strategy will include actively targeting the stressful situation resulting in this behavior, obtaining information about the harmful effects of alcohol and the recommended levels of consumption among women, chalking out a plan to solve the problem and then communicating with experts or friends for the purpose of obtaining help and knowledge on eradicating alcohol misuse (Bafghi et al., 2018). Outcomes Of Coping (Adaptation) This step involves short term and long term implications after adequate management of the stressful situation and the associated harmful health behavior (Glanz, 2015). Hence, after successfully managing the concerned stressors leading to reduction of alcohol consumption to acceptable levels, short term effects may include positive health outcomes in the form of reduced harmful stress-associated physical and physiological symptoms and long term effects in the form of increased optimism, emotional wellbeing, healthy functional status and improve coping abilities of future stressful situations (Fernández-Solà, 2015).Dispositional Coping Styles This step involves long term adherence and usage of coping strategies which influence one’s emotional and functional appraisal of future stressors. Types of coping styles include optimism, benefit finding and information seeking (Glanz, 2015). For the purpose of eradication of excessive alcohol consumption, the coping style of benefit finding will be used. Benefit Finding involves identification of positive implications upon successful management of the stressor and health behavior. Hence, after reduction of alcohol consumption to recommended levels for women, the coping style of benefit finding will involve reappraising the stressor in the future by considering the positive health effects associated with limited alcohol consumption (Graham, 2015). Confidence To Change Considering the usage of a transactional model of stress and coping, I am confident that I will be able to successfully change by health behavior in the presence of stressors in the future, due to the documented benefits of this model. However, I still lack sufficient confidence to change since I am unaware of the negative implications associated with alcohol consumption as well as the recommended levels for females. I also lack adequate confidence to change since I readily perceive a stressor to be negative and threatening, will compels me to undertake harmful behavior. However, seeking information and reappraisal of the situation through problem management and benefit finding coping strategies will allow me to regain and enhance my confidence to change this health behavior. For this, I have formulated a plan to manage stress and garner social support (See Appendix). Conclusion Hence, it can be concluded that the transactional model of stress and coping has been found to be an effective way to manage one’s emotional and functional response to stressors leading to changing of harmful health behaviors. Hence, through the usage of the steps underlying transactional model of stress and coping, I will be able to successfully reduced my alcohol consumption to recommended levels. References Bafghi, S. M. S., Ahmadi, N., Ardekani, S. M. Y., Jafari, L., Ardekani, B. B., Heydari, R., … & Faraji, R. (2018). A Survey of Coping Strategies With Stress in Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction and Individuals Without a History of Fixed Myocardial Infarction. Cardiology research, 9(1), 35. de Frias, C. M., & Whyne, E. (2015). Stress on health-related quality of life in older adults: The protective nature of mindfulness. Aging & Mental Health, 19(3), 201-206. Dhabhar, F. S. (2014). Effects of stress on immune function: the good, the bad, and the beautiful. Immunologic research, 58(2-3), 193-210. Fernández-Solà, J. (2015). Cardiovascular risks and benefits of moderate and heavy alcohol consumption. Nature Reviews Cardiology, 12(10), 576. Glanz, K., 2015. Health behavior: Theory, research, and practice. John Wiley & Sons. Graham, L. J. (2015). Integration of the interaction model of client health behavior and transactional model of stress and coping as a tool for understanding retention in HIV care across the lifespan. Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 26(2), 100-109. Schönfeld, P., Brailovskaia, J., Bieda, A., Zhang, X. C., & Margraf, J. (2016). The effects of daily stress on positive and negative mental health: Mediation through self-efficacy. International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 16(1), 1-10. Zimmer?Gembeck, M. J. (2016). Peer Rejection, Victimization, and Relational Self?System Processes in Adolescence: Toward a Transactional Model of Stress, Coping, and Developing Sensitivities. Child Development Perspectives, 10(2), 122-127.

HLTH 225 Introduction To Health Behaviors

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