The area in which we live, the economy, school examinations, our personal lifestyle and our jobs can cause a great deal of stress. On the other hand, not everyone deals with the same level of stress and there are several factors that can impact our lives and cause us to have higher or lower levels of stress. In reality, stress can be good and bad. Stress can be good in small quantities as it provides people with the extra energy or alertness they need, hence stimulating creativity and productivity. However, too much stress in the long run, usually known as chronic stress, can be detrimental in the general life of a person. Our main focus tonight will be on the three factors of stress that negatively affects the long term existence of a person and these include emotional, physical and behavioral symptoms. Firstly, the emotional symptoms could one day lead to an increase in a heart attack. Generally, when you perceive a threat, your nervous system responds by releasing a flood of stress hormones and these rouse the body for emergency action. This means that your heart pounds faster, your blood pressure arises, your breath quickens and your senses become sharper. Moreover, you are more likely to become easily frustrated, moody, develop negative thinking and even lose your sense of humor. According to a recent study of 200,000 employees in Europe, it was found that people who have stressful jobs are 23% more likely to have a first heart attack than people with less job-related stress. Secondly, the physical symptoms could sooner or later initiate into depression and a loss of control. This implies that you tend have frequent colds whereby your mouth becomes dry and hence you have difficulty in swallowing. In addition, you are likely to have an upset stomach including constipation and nausea, as well as headaches which are followed by sleep disorders and continuous fatigue. In fact, one of my ex-colleagues fell into a depression due to