RUNNING HEAD: STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 1

Samantha Greene

Content Knowledge Project on Stress: The result of a devastating, yet lovely world.

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte




Please choose ctrl + click your mouse on the URL below to view my Content Knowledge Project
Website.
http://samanthagreeneckpproject.weebly.com/


My paper proceeds on the following page.






















STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 2

What is stress? Yes, as individuals in society we all, at one point in our lives, are
overcome with stress. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary the definition of stress is a
state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life, work, etc. This definition
describing what stress is can be easily understood, unlike the next definition given within the
same dictionary, the deformation caused in a body by such a force. Nonetheless, children and
adults both experience times in life which they worry, or their body is challenged by a force, but
what matters is how these times of uneasiness are managed in a time of crisis. Our children are
our future, the extreme stress due to many tragedies of our past may have been prevented if all
individuals had the support from others and appropriate strategies to cope with their stress.
There has been a great deal of research conducted on the idea of a person under stress, for
instance, of how the stress begun, the symptoms, and how to lower an individuals high level of
stress. A study was conducted within the Department of Health Science in Sweden regarding
childrens experiences with stress. Researchers Catrine Kostenius and Kerstin Ohrling worked
collaboratively to gather information about how children have learned to cope with stress
overtime and the strategies they have used. After written permission from the parents and
children, whom ranged from ages ten to twelve, the children were given the opportunity to
express through writing how they cope with stress, as well as, by participating in an interview.
Over the course of the study researchers Kostenius and Ohrling observed a pattern taking
place among the childrens answers, the children either (a) depended on oneself or others around
them for assistance (b) the children chose to be a doer (c) or children tended to concentrate on
the current stressful circumstances (Kostenius & Ohrling, 2008). Generally, the children who
participated in this study, after trial and error, had learned what strategies worked best for them.
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 3

A few common coping strategies were to express themselves through healthy physical
activity, listening to music, and using relaxation techniques. All of these strategies for coping
with stress were put it to action by the children, although, the children did not learn them
themselves, they were taught these explicit approaches to stress (Kostenius & Ohrling, 2008). A
few coping mechanisms that the children believed worked the best were taking a brief nap,
reading a book, and excusing themselves from the entire situation (Kostenius & Ohrling, 2008).
Regardless of the plan, children learned overtime that being stressed was not a positive way to
live and they needed to learn how to handle these emotions in a healthy manner. Within this
article, researchers infer that an individual who is frequently stressed is not in a healthy state of
mind, yet other research concludes that stress has positive and negative effects.
So can stress be a helpful aspect in a persons life if is the right amount? But what is
considered the right amount of stress? In their book, authors John Harvey and Eric Miller discuss
that on average about half of individuals who encounter stressful experiences have a positive
consequence that results from the experience. There even has been a theory suggested, Taylors
Cognitive Adaptation Theory, stating traumatic life events initially take their toll by challenging
peoples sense of meaning, their sense of mastery, and their self-esteem positive
reinterpretation and selective focus and evaluation are mechanisms by which individuals restore
their view of themselves and the world (Harvey & Miller, pg. 7). If this is true, then individuals,
such as myself, must remember that although challenges are faced due to tragedies, there will
always me a positive consequence along with the negative consequence.
As noted, some of the negative effects of stress are high levels of depression and anxiety.
Such things as how optimistic and pessimistic an individual is can influence the level of, for
instance, anxiety he/she may experience during life (Harvey & Miller, 2000). Unfortunately, if
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 4

an individual endures a traumatic experience they may encounter a diagnosis of post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD). This disorder is due to a great degree of stress and occurs over long
period of time. Authors Harvey and Miller listed a few possible symptoms of individuals who are
diagnosed with PTSD, and they are, not enjoying activities they previously had a strong interest
in or detaching from close friends and relatives (Harvey & Miller, 2000). A recent, heartbreaking
event that occurred causing a great deal of stress, with many individuals diagnosed with this
serious disorder, was the shooting that took place in Newton, Connecticut.
Sadly, this rampage shooting affected millions of people due to the mass media whom
covered the event for the months following the tragedy. This rare episode which occurred at an
elementary school, in a small town, brought the nation together in mourning and a greatly
appreciated appearance from President Obama. A study that was conducted shortly after the
tragedy took place suggests that on average 10-36% of individuals who were directly related to
this mass shooting were diagnosed soon after with PTSD. The number reported is broad due to
many more individuals reporting psychological symptoms relevant to PTSD but were not
medically diagnosed (Shultz, Muschert, Dingwall, Cohen, 2013). I cant even begin to imagine
how the hundreds of individuals who were present in the school during those heart-stopping
twelve minutes, the immediate family members, in addition to the emergency response staff felt
after hearing the news.
Many more in the nation were overcome with stress and grief as they were alerted as to
what happened within an elementary school on what seemed to be an ordinary afternoon. The
authors of The Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting as Tipping Point, described the
media as integral and inseparable from events such as this tragedy (Shultz et al., pg. 3).
Another critical, nation-changing moment in our history was on September 11, 2001. The United
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 5

States of America will forever remember this day and how it affected a countless number of
people.
I had the opportunity to interview an individual whose family had strong ties to the
military, as well as herself being enlisted in the Navy soon after September 11, 2001. As she
spoke about her experiences on that day and the effects on her family I was overcome with chills
through my body; the story was riveting. Rashawn, the interviewee, described her day in great
detail with as much worry as she had on the day it happened. Her father was in the military and
was one of the soldiers who would fly in a decoy plane beside the president in the case of an
emergency. It was a great possibility that if the country was under great danger the president
would ride in one of the nations planes, and randomly be placed in one of those three planes to
create a distraction (Hawkins, 2014).
The interviewee described that cruel day as very stressful, as she could not contact her
father until later that afternoon due to security reasons. And after watching hours of media
coverage on the tragedy she only become more worried about what this meant for America as a
whole. At last, when her father began calling family members to assure them that he was okay,
he only said the following to Rashawn, I am okay we are going to war (Hawkins, 2014). For
the following weeks Rashawn was personally affected, although, thankfully none of her family
were harmed. If Ms. Hawkins emotions were so intense, I cant imagine the stress and worry of
individuals whose friends and family were harmed.
Historical Perspective
These two tragedies will forever haunt the United States of America, although, we as a
nation can take action and not allow history to repeat itself. After researching both the 9/11 and
Sandy Hook tragedy I have a deeper understanding and a greater amount of empathy for those
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 6

who were overcome with stress because of these events. Since 1992, during the span of twenty-
two years, there have been 387 shootings that occurred at our schools around the nation (Algard,
2009). Not at every one of these shootings were innocent lives taken, yet the horror that remains
is more powerful than any individual can describe in words.
With regards to the tragedy that occurred on September 11, 2001, America was at war for
almost nine years once the attack on our country was determined as a threat and an act of war.
Our current president, Barrack Obama, made the promise to begin bringing our troops home at
the beginning of his presidency, and he kept his promise (Iraq Timeline). Toward the end of the
war, President Obama concluded his thoughts by making this statement to the world: They have
their all, their last full measure of devotion, in Kandahar, in the Korengal, in Helmand, in the
battles for Baghdad and Fallujah and Ramadi. Now they lay at rest in quiet corners of America,
but they live on in the families who lived them and in a nation that is safer because of their
service. And today we pay humble tribute to the more than 6,200 Americans in uniform who have
given their lives in this hard decade of war. We honor them all. (Iraq Timeline).
Although, unfortunately there are numerous statistics regarding the number of people
who were murdered during tragedies such as these described. Yet, behind every statistic is a
person, and behind every person is story. Their stories will continue to live on with their friends
and families forever.
Political Perspective
Due to national tragedies, actions must be taken through our government to attempt to
prevent instances, such as those mentioned, from reoccurring. Depending on the severity of the
tragedy the President will intervene and make statements to us Americans. Over the years,
former President George W. Bush and President Barrack Obama have both addressed the country
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 7

to make statements. Policies have also begun their proposal process in regards to gun control.
Vice President, Joe Biden, had been given the responsibly by President Obama to lead our
government to fair, yet firm, gun control policies (Now is the Time.)
Conclusion
As individuals with emotions, we encounter a great deal of experiences and some are
more pleasant than others. Nonetheless, we cannot change what we face, but we can alter how
we react. Stress is unavoidable and must be handled with care, especially with regards to our
children who are unfamiliar with this feeling. Tragedies like the shooting rampage at Sandy
Hook, and the attack on our country in 2001 will sadly continue to occur in years to come.
However, what is detrimental to know is we can receive a positive message out of our
unfortunate circumstances and make ourselves emotionally stronger. It will be terribly difficult
for children, who think of stress as an abstract idea, but as adults we can be suitable role models
and guide them in a direction for a healthy mind.
Reflection
While researching for this project, I not only learned new information but I was also able
to take an unbiased approach and view many different perspectives. Due to my age, I was very
young when the attack on our country happened close to thirteen years ago; I wasnt sure what
was happening and all I knew is it was something serious. Having the opportunity to look at
reliable sources, such as The White Houses website, there was a concrete and easy-to-read
timeline of the events that followed September 11, 2001. Now that I am a young adult, I have the
maturity and a great deal of empathy for all of those individuals who were affected by two of the
greatest tragedies America has seen.
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 8

I began this project with the grade range that I would like to teach once I have my own
classroom, Kindergarten or first grade. Students who are five and six years old are finally
experiencing the world outside of their home, and school is the first place where they have the
opportunity to explore. Students this age will not have a great understanding of how to express
their emotions positively after experiencing something new; in the eyes of a Kindergartener,
another student taking your pencil can be devastating. This is why I decided to explore more
about the idea of stress, specifically, stress caused by tragedies that have occurred around us.
The social studies standard which correlates with this notion of stress is K.H.1
Understand change over time. This standard is fairly broad, yet in my classroom I could explore
with my students a great deal of information. Stress always has a cause, which then creates a
reaction in us as individuals. I believe students, especially young students, need to be taught
early how to express their emotions appropriately; this is also closely related with their
communication skills.
Having the opportunity to explore more in-depth about these two tragedies that occurred,
in addition to the idea of stress and coping strategies, will greatly impact my teaching in the
classroom. While I was completing my research, all I could think of is the children who were all
directly related to these events and if they knew strategies to positively cope. In my classroom, I
will not only focus on the academic aspect of school, but I will also integrate skills that will
support them through life. Now that I have completed this project, I have numerous topics
regarding life skills that I will be teaching my students. I also learned that regardless of the event,
there will be multiple perspectives on the causes, effects, etc. I will explore with my students
different perspectives in order to make certain they are well educated about a topic before they
come to their own conclusion.
STRESS: THE RESULT OF A DEVESTATING, YET LOVELY WORLD 9

References
Algard, A., 2009. StopTheShootings.org - maps of school shootings. StopTheShootings.org.
Retrieved 4/15/14, from http://www.stoptheshootings.org/
Harvery, J.H., & Miller, E.D. (2000). Loss and Trauma: General and Close Relationship
Perspectives. Philadelphia, PA: Brumer-Routledge.
Hawkins, R. N. (2014, 03 10). Interview by S.E. Greene []. About September 11, 2001.
Kostenius, C., & Ohrling, K. (2009). Being Relaxed and Powerful: Childrens Lived Experiences
of Coping with Stress. Children and Society, 23, 203-213.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1099-
0860.2008.00168.x/pdf
Shultz, J.M., Muschert, G.W.., Dingwall, A., McCohen, A. (2013). The Sandy Hook Elementary
School Shooting as a Tipping Point. Disaster Health, 1(1).
https://www.landesbioscience.com/journals/disasterhealth/2013DHComm02.pdf