Stress, a defense mechanism is found to be a trigger for disharmony,disillusion,Divorces and Suicides.
The WHO study high lights an increase in the number of suicides in India.
Experts suggest that the rapid economic development, setting of High goals not in tune with Reality,lack of harmony in Relationships as some of the reasons .
The incidence is high in The IT Industry, where people do not realize they build Anxiety at an enormous pace with impossible dead lines,irregular work timings,less time to spend with the family and inability to handle high Income at a young age.
Suicides are not the result of a single event ; it is an accumulation of pressure built over a period of time and it explodes the moment a flash point is reached.
In a two-part Essay we shall attempt to understand this phenomenon.
Stress is organism‘s defense mechanism to enable it to survive.
Without Stress ,organisms will not be to bring out the best in them, react appropriately.
Inappropriate reaction may lead to the extinction of Life.
When one fights for air,water and other basic needs the urgency is felt and the organism reacts and it is basically instinctive.
Stress has both a psychological and physiological effect.
Psychologically it affects our emotions causing such things as anger, frustration, fear, burnout,anxiety and depression.
Physiologically, stress increases the risk of everything from warts to Cancer.
People tend to mistake Stress for Anxiety, which is detrimental to health.
Anxiety is a conscious deliberation of the events, course of action one is about to perform or has already performed.
Stress is that which drives to take a course of action which you can not avoid.
Origins of Stress.
Man is driven by instincts.
Instincts become Feelings and feelings turn into Emotions.
Emotions fortified with Will become actions and repeated Actions become a Habit.
Basic Instincts.
Instincts of Survival,
Thirst,
Hunger,
Sex and
These are indicated above in the order of priority to the Organism.
When there is a clash of Instincts(which happens at all times during Life) among themselves ,Conflict arises.
These Conflicts are resolved by the organism on the basis of priority to ensure its survival.
For instance, if there is a choice before a Man Water and Food when he is both Thirsty and Hungry, he will choose Water.
Similarly when there is clash between Hunger and Thirst ,Thirst will score.
While resolving these Conflicts, the organism is torn between the instincts and we feel the Stress.
Normally Stress is resolved biologically by the Organism.
But the Cognitive instrument we call the Mind starts analyzing and it causes anxiety.
We completely forget that in the battle between the Heart and Mind Heart always wins.
We presume that Mind does.
Therefore, the essential problem does not concern Stress per se but our cognition of it.
Mind is the instrument.
One needs to train the Mind to manage Stress.
Eradicating Stress is not possible.
Stress will cease ony when we die.
Stress and Suicides.
“Young Indians are more likely to commit suicide than previously thought, especially those living in wealthier and more educated regions.
According to a study, experts say that India’s rapid development is driving many youths to despair.
Opportunities that have come with two decades of economic boom and open markets have also brought more job anxiety, higher expectations and more pressure to achieve, mental health experts said.
India has some of the world’s highest suicide rates, with many believing the biggest risk group to be rural farmers facing debt after poor harvests.
However, the study – published in the Lancet medical journal on Friday – says suicide rates are highest in the 15-29 age group, peaking in southern regions that are considered richer and more developed with better education, social welfare and health care.
That puts the young at high risk – a new phenomenon experts said has happened recently as more middle-class youths strive to meet achievement expectations, and new technologies like cell phones and social networking sites help break down traditional family units once relied on for support.
Overall, the report uses a national government survey of deaths in 2001-03 to estimate 187,000 suicides took place in 2010, making it the cause of 3 per cent of deaths that year.
The WHO reports about 1 million suicides a year, which would be a rate of about 14 per 100,000 in a global population of 7 billion. By comparison, the U.S. had 37,790 suicides in 2010, or a rate of 12.2 per 100,000, while India’s rate under the Lancet’s projected suicide tally of 187,000 would be near 16 – far higher than earlier reports and estimates of around 10.
There has been little scientific examination of suicide motives in India.
For Detailed Report:
http://www.who.int/mental_health/prevention/suicide/country_reports/en/index.html
Related articles
http://ramanisblog.in/2013/01/30/stress-in-it-industry-causes/
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