On the other hand, when you feel tired and old and think about how much you would love to return to your childhood years, remember Mrs Algebra and all those things you could not do even though you wanted to, or what you had to do even though you did not want to!

Our ways for dealing with the sources of stress change in a similar way. For instance, the older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for. Normally, our strategies for dealing with problems should improve with the passing of time. I say normally, because I have seen several older adults who, despite their experiences and ripe-old age, do not seem to have learnt much.

The following text illustrates the shift in the types of problems experienced by children and adults and the coping strategies used to deal with these.

A time-out from “Adult life”

Who wouldn’t want to return to the years when:

Important decisions were made using “eeny, meeny, miny, moe!”

Mistakes were corrected simply by “tearing up the sheet of paper and starting over!”

The worst punishment and chore was to write “I will never …” 100 times.

Disputes were resolved by playing “rock-paper-scissors.”

“I’ve got money” only meant that you could buy gum or an ice cream at recess.

Filling a bag with marbles was enough to keep you happy all afternoon.

It wasn’t strange to have two or three “best” friends.

The phrase “they are very old” referred to anyone over 18.

“Robbers and Policemen” was a game played only at recess … and it was more fun being the robber rather than the police officer.

The word “poisonous” referred only to types of “insects or forbidden liquids,” not to people.

To travel from earth to the sky all you needed was to become “Superman or an astronaut.”

It was great playing football without goalposts or volleyball without a net; and the rules didn’t really matter either …

The worst thing that could happen with the opposite sex was to be caught playing “doctors and nurses.”

“Bringing a weapon into school,” meant you had been caught with a catapult.

“Last one is a dork!” was the cry that made you run so fast you thought your heart was going to explode.

The “Tooth Fairy” left a coin under your pillow in exchange for your tooth. And if she left you a note … you really thought you’d reached the sky!

Discovering new skills was prompted by the phrase “I bet you can’t …”

“Disappointment” meant being the last to be selected for the school play or the football team.

“War” meant throwing pieces of chalk or paper balls during chemistry. War was something that had happened before we were born and was never going to happen again.

“Water bombs” were the latest, smartest and powerful weapons ever invented.

Ice cream and chocolate were the basic nutritional food groups.

In order to transform your bicycle into a powerful “motorbike” all you needed was a plastic bottle near the wheel and a lot of imagination.

There was no better way to spend summer afternoons than playing with the children in your neighbourhood or waiting to see your favourite neighbour, who really loved you, going by.

A “big brother” was the worst torturer, but also the strongest and most loyal protector.

– Attributed to Anne Geddes

We have so far examined possible sources of stress and their various categorizations, as well as gender and age differences. It is now time to examine the physical and psychological effects of stress. Bear in mind that some degree of stress is both necessary and useful. It is excessive stress we will be talking about next.

Stress and … excessive stress

Chapter 3: Symptoms and effects of stress

Every stress leaves an indelible scar, and the organism pays for its survival after a stressful situation by becoming a little older. – Dr Hans Selye

IS STRESS dangerous? What are the effects of excessive stress on our health?

The short answer is … numerous. I assume that, like most people, you are quite stressed. Read on!

– Studies have shown that 60 to 90 percent of visits to doctors are associated with stress (Perkins, 1994).

– A study of 2,465 Danish urban bus drivers showed that little social contact with colleagues, increased work pace, and heavy traffic were predictors of ischemic heart disease (Netterstrom & Juel, 1988).