Final answer:
Altering your outlook on stress can help you recognize when it is beneficial, as positive stress, known as eustress, can improve performance and health. However, chronic stress can lead to serious health issues. Cognitive appraisal plays a role in experiencing stress, emphasizing the importance of our perspective on stress.
Step-by-step explanation:
It may be important to alter your outlook on stress because positive stress can be beneficial (Option b). Hans Selye, a pioneering researcher on stress, coined the term eustress to describe a form of stress that is associated with positive feelings, optimal health, and performance. Eustress can act as a motivating force, for instance, helping athletes to perform better due to pregame stress or students to recall educational material more efficiently due to stress before an exam. However, when stress is extreme or chronic, it has negative consequences on both mental and physical health, contributing to serious health conditions and diseases.
The way we interpret events can define whether we experience stress, suggesting that changing our cognitive appraisal of situations may alter our stress experiences. While short-term stresses can be stimulating and enhance certain immune responses, long-term or chronic stress is detrimental to health and well-being.
Understanding that stress is not always harmful and recognizing when it is beneficial versus when it is damaging is crucial for managing stress effectively in our lives.