为什么压力对你有好处

为什么压力对你有好处

Stress has measurable and significant physical and mental health impacts (a Yale study found chronic stress can actually shrink your brain), and we hear quite a bit about it, as researchers continue examining its long and short-term influence. They've even determined that stress is contagious.

压力对身体和精神健康的影响是可以测量的，而且是显著的(耶鲁大学的一项研究发现，长期的压力实际上会使你的大脑萎缩)。他们甚至确定压力是会传染的。

But what's not often talked about is that some stress is beneficial. This is not the chronic stress that can hurt you, but the heightened emotional state one feels before speaking in public or writing an important paper. Scientists have found that our abilities peak under moderate levels of stress. And as long as it doesn't go on too long, that short-duration stress isn't unhealthy.

但人们不常谈论的是，一些压力是有益的。这不是会伤害你的慢性压力，而是在公开演讲或撰写重要论文之前所感受到的高度情绪状态。科学家发现，我们的能力在适度的压力下达到顶峰。只要持续的时间不太长，持续时间短的压力就不是不健康的。

Short bursts of stress can be good for you — but being perpetually late all the time probably isn't the best way to accomplish that feeling. (Photo: Stokke/Shutterstock)

Stress and anxiety are unavoidable elements of our lives and sometimes can have benefits.

压力和焦虑是我们生活中不可避免的因素，有时也有好处。

But the key is not to worry if you are stressed sometimes.

但关键是，如果你有时有压力，不要担心。

A study at the University of California, Berkeley, found that “Some amounts of stress are good to push you just to the level of optimal alertness, behavioral and cognitive performance,” said Daniela Kaufer, associate professor of integrative biology at the UC Berkeley, in a news release.

加州大学伯克利分校综合生物学副教授丹妮拉·考弗在新闻发布会上表示，一项研究发现，“一定程度的压力有助于将你的警觉性、行为和认知能力提升到最佳水平。”

Those stress hormones can help animals (and people) adapt to changing environments. For example, we are more likely to remember something if it was accompanied by some level of stress.

这些应激激素可以帮助动物(和人类)适应不断变化的环境。例如，如果某件事伴随着某种程度的压力，我们更有可能记住它。

However, when those stressful events are continuous, the opposite occurs and the memory is impaired, she said.

然而，当这些压力事件持续时，相反的情况就会发生，记忆力就会受损，她说。

Stress plays the job of keeping you alert and telling you to pay attention. (Photo: MvanCaspel/Shutterstock)

So how do you know when stress is healthy or not? There isn't an exact answer, and on top of that, individual people vary in their response to stress. But one way to mitigate stress is to actively address it. Ignoring it by vegging out in front of the TV or drinking wine doesn't address the deeper levels (or causes) of stress. And those people who do manage stress — people who are generally skilled at managing their emotions — are more likely to perform at higher levels.

那么，你怎么知道什么时候压力是健康的呢?没有一个确切的答案，最重要的是，每个人对压力的反应各不相同。但是减轻压力的一个方法是积极地解决它。在电视前呆坐或喝酒忽视压力并不能解决压力的深层(或原因)。而那些管理压力的人——那些通常善于管理自己情绪的人——更有可能表现得更好。

So minimizing stress is tactic A, but tactic B is actively managing the stress and emotions you have in response. Getting quality sleep, meditating, exercising, banishing negative self-talk and engaging in positive thinking, deep breathing, spending time with friends, taking time off, and disconnecting from work are all active ways to deal with stress.

最小化压力是策略A，但策略B是积极管理你的压力和情绪。获得高质量的睡眠、冥想、锻炼、摒弃消极的自言自语、积极思考、深呼吸、与朋友共度时光、休息、远离工作都是应对压力的积极方式。