Stress – causes, symptoms and how to reduce stress at work and in exams

How stress works in the body, the signs of too much stress and burnout, and practical ways to ease stress at work, at home and before exams.

Chapters on this topic

Chapter 7: Stress and the Body

Alarm, fuel, and the bill : The body keeps the same books as the mind.

• 7.1 What is stress?
• 7.2 The stress response: fight, flight, freeze
• 7.3 The HPA axis and cortisol
• 7.4 Effects of chronic stress
• 7.5 Types of stress
• 7.6 Signs and symptoms
• 7.7 Stress and mental disorders
• 7.8 Level-wise impact
• 7.9 Healthy ways to manage stress
• 7.10 Unhealthy coping
• 7.11 Common causes of stress
• 7.12 Burnout
• 7.13 Stress versus anxiety
• 7.14 Adjustment disorder
• 7.15 Thinking differently about stress
• 7.16 One companion verse

Chapter 29: Workplace and Academic Stress

Deadlines, exams, burnout, and a workload that has a body

• 29.1 Academic pressure
• 29.2 The body at a desk
• 29.3 Workplace mental health
• 29.4 What to do that is not a slogan
• 29.5 Common work-related problems
• 29.6 If you are a manager
• 29.7 Talking about mental health at work
• 29.8 Returning to work after illness
• 29.9 Test anxiety
• 29.10 Bullying and cyberbullying
• 29.11 Supporting students
• 29.12 Gap years, study abroad, and leaving home
• 29.13 Life transitions
• 29.14 A short story
• Key points to remember

Stories from real life (10)

• The Exam Season Knot – Priya, seventeen, lives in Jaipur and is two months away from her board exams. Every evening, when she opens her chemistry book, her heart…
• Running on Empty – Rahul, thirty-four, manages a software team in Pune. For two years he has said yes to every request, working until ten at night and…
• A New Country, A Heavy Heart – Mei Lin moved from Singapore to Manchester three months ago for her husband's job. She left behind her friends and her work as a…
• Meera, Age 38 – Meera worked long hours, cared for ageing parents, and managed the household. She felt rushed and tense. She slept late, skipped meals, and drank…
• The Night Before the Board Exam – Ishaan, sixteen, in Kota, had been studying fourteen hours a day for months. His parents had sold a plot of land for his coaching…
• The Inbox That Never Ends – Anjali, thirty-six, a team lead at a Chennai company, took on every request. She worked late, answered messages at dawn and skipped leave for…
• The Boss Who Humiliated – Ravi, twenty-eight, a junior analyst in Mumbai, was shouted at in meetings by his senior, who mocked his accent and left him out of…
• The Day the Letter Came – Hassan, forty-five, worked at a firm in Birmingham after moving from Syria. He lost his job in a restructuring. He felt shock, then anger,…
• The Daughter Who Carried Everyone – Grace, forty-two, in Nairobi, worked night shifts as a nurse, raised two teenagers and cared for her mother, who had dementia. She slept in…
• The Third Sunday – Nila’s firm called it a busy season. The season did not end. She started missing the only hour she walked. Sunday night felt like…

Shloks (1)

• Bhagavad Gita 2.14 – Contacts with the world give cold and heat, pleasure and pain. They come and go; they are not lasting. Endure them, O Bharata.

More topics

• What is mental health? A simple guide to the mind and who can help
• The brain, hormones and body chemistry behind your moods
• Emotions, anger and mood swings – understanding your feelings
• Anxiety, panic attacks and fear – signs, causes and what helps
• Depression and low mood – signs, causes and the way back
• Trauma, grief and loss – healing at your own pace
• Children, teenagers and parents – mental health at home and school
• Sleep problems, food and daily routine for a healthy mind
• Counselling, therapy and psychiatric medicines explained
• Helping a loved one with mental illness – family and relationships
• Mental health crisis and suicide prevention – what to do
• The five senses, the five elements and the mind
• Bhagavad Gita, yoga and Indian wisdom for mental peace
• Addiction to alcohol, tobacco, drugs and gambling – signs and recovery
• Phone addiction, social media and screen time – digital well-being
• Ageing well, memory loss and dementia – caring for elders