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Section 10
Symptoms of Occupational Stress in Men

Question 10 | Test | Table of Contents

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In the last section, we discussed how the body copes with stress.  This information may benefit your client in understanding how prolonged stress can cause permanent damage.  Three ways the body copes with stress are through motor nerves, autonomic nerves and through the adrenal gland and hypothalamus. 

In this section... we will look at symptoms of stress that generally appear to be unique to male stress.  Generally speaking there are two types of stress symptoms regarding male stress.  Two types of stress symptoms are common symptoms and symptoms unique to men.

♦ #1  Common Symptoms
Would you agree that far too often men ignore stress symptoms, denying their potential consequences and avoiding having to address their causes?  My colleague Greg often counsels couples in which there is a male workaholic client.  Greg has explained to me that the wives of stressed males who are work-focused identify physical signs of stress as insomnia, headaches, allergies (hives, hay fever, and congestion), teeth grinding, jaw clenching (temporomandibular joint muscle spasms, or TMJ), nausea, indigestion, and heartburn, or backaches and stiff necks. 

When men themselves were asked about their physical symptoms of stress, Greg found that one of the few symptoms they consistently reported noticing was that they perspired more under stress!  I asked Greg, "What about all the symptoms reported by the women?"  Greg stated, "I find that men acknowledge them, but do not usually attribute them to stress; they tend to attribute them simply to age or fatigue."  

Would you agree that men seem to add new stress symptoms to old ones as they age?  For example, does your male workaholic client think each is a sign of a malignancy or premature aging rather than stress?  I find that in clients who attribute physical signs of stress to illness or aging, fears will compound their stresses and multiply their symptoms.  If male stress clients are avoiding medical checkups as well, more serious stress-related disorders may actually develop.

♦ #2  Symptoms Unique to Men
In addition to the more general stress symptoms, which are shared by women under stress, men under stress show some symptoms that are uniquely theirs, more frequently theirs, or more dangerous when they are theirs. These symptoms are as follows:

•           Hypertension (high blood pressure)
•           Atherosclerosis (high cholesterol level)
•           Heart attack (myocardial infarction)
•           Heart failure
•           Peptic ulcer (gastric or duodenal)
•           Alcoholism
•           Erectile dysfunction
•           Premature ejaculation
•           Retarded ejaculation

Some of these ailments and disorders relate to the male physiology.  Some reflect social, sexual, and psychological demands associated with being a man in this culture.  Some are affected by early upbringing and developmental history.  Some reflect lifestyle.  And some are brought on by the life changes and events that are part of a man’s experience.

Clearly, each of your male client’s stress factors effects his stress level.  How do you relate your client’s physical symptoms to his stress levels?  You might try the Laugh at Stress Exercise.

♦ Exercise:  Laugh at Stress
The laugh at stress exercise uses humor to help foster an acceptance of the adversity which causes stress.  Suggest to your workaholic client that he look for the irony or absurdity in the painful situation.  Perhaps he can draw cartoons of the situation or make a good news/bad news joke out of it.  One client, Randy, when told he had choices, said, "Yeah, which wrist to slash, my left or my right."  This sense of humor eventually led to flashes of acceptance and Randy began to learn to decrease his stress levels through humor.

Would you agree that laughter is one of the best ways to open a blocked acceptor.  Perhaps your male stress client might, for example, make a point of telling or exchanging two jokes a day.  Could he ask people he meets if they have heard any good jokes lately?  If they tell him a joke, he can pass it along to others. Think of your Randy.  Could he benefit from laughing at stress?  Perhaps playing this section for your client might help.

In this section... we discussed male stress.  We discussed how stress is different for male clients.  Our discussion included physical signs of stress and how those physical signs of stress are perceived differently by women and men.  We also looked at symptoms of stress that generally appear to be unique to male stress.  We examined two types of stress symptoms regarding male stress.  Two types of stress symptoms are common symptoms and symptoms unique to men.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Article References:
Gerber, M., Schilling, R., Colledge, F., Ludyga, S., Pühse, U., & Brand, S. (2020). More than a simple pastime? The potential of physical activity to moderate the relationship between occupational stress and burnout symptoms. International Journal of Stress Management, 27(1), 53–64.

Kapsaridi, A., & Charvoz, L. (2021). Men’s stress expression and perception of partner’s support within the romantic relationships: A systematic review. Psychology of Men & Masculinities, 22(2), 375–390.

Reti, T., de Terte, I., & Stephens, C. (2021). Traumatic exposure, work-related stressors and gender as risk factors in the development of psychological distress for ambulance personnel. Traumatology. Advance online publication.

QUESTION 10
What are two types of stress symptoms regarding male stress? To select and enter your answer go to Test.