Is stress beneficial for a human body?

Stress is something every human being can feel at any point in their life and it takes a toll on their mental as well as physical health, making it extremely hard to perform day-to-day tasks with agility. 

But have you ever wondered that there can be situations where stress plays an integral part in your life and is actually beneficial?

Host of the podcast, "10% Happier", Dan Harris recalled a case of jittering before a TV appearance.

“In the seconds before I went on I was pacing around,” he said as quoted by NPR.

The host continues to reveal that his appearance “went great” and he has come to understand that some of the aspects of stress are sometimes good.

A psychologist at the University of Rochester, Jeremy Jamieson, explains that the way your body responds to a stressful situation is a way your body’s preparing itself for a challenge.

“We’re not passive receivers of stress,” Jamieson explains. “We’re active agents in actually making our own stress response.”

Stress during challenges can give the human body fuel to address demands it faces, Jamieson explains as when our heart beat rises, it can aid in delivering more oxygen to brain and muscles.

Furthermore, researcher Wendy Berry Mendes explains that context of a stressful situation or a stress trigger is important.

Mendes, a professor of psychology at Yale University, added that a human body responds differently to different types of stress and linked studies from Scandinavia that found stress hormones in students appearing for vital tests results in better performances.

NPR adds that not every human brain responds to stressing situations in the same way.