She is a licensed clinical psychologist working in private practice and consulting in Pacific Palisades, California. When we think of stress, we typically think of negative stress or distress. We experience this when we see a situation over which we feel we have no control, we perceive it as a threat, overwhelming, we can't meet the demands. Positive stress, or prostress, arises in situations over which we believe we have some control, we perceive it as a challenge rather than a threat, and feel we can learn, grow, etc. from it. We get the arousal but different mental and physical consequences.
Some people love sky diving.
Yes, of course, because the mind and body are really inextricably united. Basically distress suppresses our immune systems. Also, it leads to anxiety, depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, etc. The basic difference ties in here with our discussion. First thing we must do is to really get in touch with our goals.