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Health& Living
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Written by DR. JOHN B. NIWAGABA
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Wednesday, 09 December 2009 19:47 |
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 Recently I escorted one of my aunts to visit her children in boarding school. Along the way, her 8-year-old daughter broke the silence and said, “Mum, I’m so stressed!” This sent all the occupants in the car laughing; wondering what could be working the child up.
While many people use this term to describe fatigue, sleepiness, hangover and general discomfort - its physical forms, it could also manifest in other forms. Many of us look for physical manifestations to know we are overstretched but actually the symptoms depend on how we adapt to stress. While some people lose weight, others may gain it, some become sleepless, others extremely restless.
A young girl subconsciously chose to lock out all thoughts about a boy who had dumped her in an attempt to get over it. However, it became generalised and she ended up forgetting even the most basic things; like her name, belongings, time and places. It took the intervention of a psychologist to save her.
Thanks to Paka Last, a friend of mine can make about a hundred calls a day because he’s fighting financial difficulties. Surprisingly, he gets companions to talk to for periods of up to four hours non-stop, even during working hours. Even when the talk has no relation with the stress factor, it offers a releasing and engaging effect.
“Tell us your name and what has annoyed you,” bellowed a presenter on a local FM radio station one evening. And caller after caller dissipated what had annoyed them in the day, quite a therapeutic show which offers catharsis to release negative energy.
Most stressed people opt for overindulgence in food, drink and sex, with a few going for binge shopping and gambling. A friend told me about a girl who ate ten packets of potato crisps per hour after refusing advances from her class teacher. Some suffer sexual addiction. A person has sex with many partners many times in a day or watches multiple porn movies, or compulsively masturbates? Often this is an adjustment reaction to stress. For A-class citizens and celebrities, compulsive spending can be an option during these low moments. Those who have subordinates often transfer their issues to their juniors. In addition, some extremist reactions have been reported. I personally attended to a case of a woman who was vomiting blood after the husband shouted at her. There is also a documented case of a woman who became blind after finding her husband in their marital bed with another woman.
All tests showed she had gone totally blind, but after six weeks, with an apology, counselling and family support, she regained her sight. These conditions are called psychosomatic disorders, where the body may respond unusually to a psychological upset.
That is why that 14-year-old girl who lynched her alleged defiler should be given psychological help to help her avoid a mental problem. It doesn’t matter who you are or how significant the stress factor is, what matters is your response. Stress is here to stay, and as long as you live, you have to prepare how to face it.
The writer is a medical doctor
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 09 December 2009 22:51 |
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