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Nancy is ready to leave the house for work and spills coffee on her clean work clothes. Then, she finds that her car will not start. When she tries to call for help, she realizes her cell phone is disconnected because she did not pay the bill. She starts to cry. In the scenario with Nancy I feel that this stress would be chronic stress. Although this appears to be one of those “Monday morning” situations that we all have at times and all of the above events do not seem that large of a problem individually, there seems to be even more underlying problems we are not aware of in this situation. The above situations would typically aggravate an individual or make them angry for sure when they happen. In this instance though I take notice of the phone being disconnected for nonpayment and this being a breaking point. Nancy does not appear to be just having a bad morning but maybe a bad several weeks. It could be an oversight that her bill was not paid, yet most companies will literally hound you before disconnection for nonpayment. If there are financial problems, this day just compiled several events together that appears to have made Nancy meet her breaking point. At this point the hypothalamus of the brain is probably working over drive with the nervous system of the body trying to compensate for the increase workload that is being forged upon the heart and lungs at this point. There has probably trying to compensate for the increase blood flow around the brain as well. All of these areas are damaging to the body. The heart is working overtime to compensate for the shot of adrenaline it has received. The increased breathing with her crying is leading to improper breathing techniques causing a lack of oxygen intake causing her to feel light headed and weak. If there are issues taking place other than what we read about there could be insomnia (this could be why she was running late as well), metabolism and appetite issues, and depression. At the very least there appears to be an anxiety issue taking place. From what we are able to ascertain from this brief description of Nancy. Attempting to just tolerate or reduce the stress could be very detrimental. This does not appear as of yet to just be an issue where new responsibilities has overwhelmed her. This appears to be an issue of Nancy’s overall life and event’s in her life overwhelming her. Eliminating some factors in her life appears to be the way to go for Nancy. I would bet that an examination of financial responsibilities and how to cope with them would be a good place to start. I would employ a problem focused strategy. In doing so I would encourage her to just talk with someone. Being able to “vent” and get things out when you feel overwhelmed or your world is falling apart does wonders for a person. Everyone needs the person they can go to and relieve the stress of everyday life. I would also like to help her to just go back and analyze what happened today. What really made you break down in tears? Why did life seem so heavy at the time? This could change my opinion on whether it was acute or chronic stress. For coping self-statements: The things that took place this morning cannot defeat me! I survived it because ultimately I am in control of the situation and I will move forward! I am just feeling anxiety. It will pass and I can make this happen more quickly if I just relax, slow my breathing, and calm down. I will think of something in my life that makes me smile. Ultimately Nancy long term health could be impacted with a stroke, heart-attack, or even death. Insomnia, sleep apnea, anything causing an individual not to rest properly ultimately can lead to these factors. The heart gets weaker because it needs to rest as well and does not have the opportunity to. Hemorrhaging of the brain can occur if she does not meet life head on. There can be unhealthy weight changes, depression can occur, and ultimately she can give up on life. References Gerrig, R.J (2012). Psychology and life. (20th edition). . Argosy University. (2014). General Psychology: Module 2. Retrieved from http://myclassonline.com