Everyone realizes that "from the womb of darkness light is born," but this does not apply to the psychological state of all people.

After suffering from a disease or a painful separation from a life partner / partner, the person may collapse even though he has managed to overcome this difficult ordeal, writer Sarah Trian said in a report published in the French newspaper Le Figaro.

Stages of the stress mechanism

According to Stephanie Bertelone, a psychologist in Lyon and the institution involved in the Stress and Anxiety Center, this phenomenon can be explained by the three main stages of the stress mechanism:

1- Alert

2- Resistance

3- Fatigue

During the ordeal, many problems that appear again are ignored once the ordeal is overlooked (Shutterstock).

"Fatigue is a reaction issued by the body that perfectly adapts to the real threats or situations that it interprets in this way. First, we find an alert phase that will put a person on alert, as the sympathetic nervous system allows the whole body to mobilize energy to deal with this new situation by Adrenaline secretion.

"After the preparation stage, we enter the consumption phase. During this resistance phase, we build a permanent physiological response, the cortisol is produced in large quantities, and the sugar and fat reserves are depleted. When resisting, we avoid feeling the burden that overburdens us, but it requires a lot of energy." .

"If the situation continues for a long time and we are not able to find a solution, we will enter the stage of exhaustion. We cannot confirm whether the end of the ordeal is what led to the state of psychological collapse, or because we no longer need to resist."

Lower attendance for those around you

After a difficult ordeal, we become more vulnerable and vulnerable to mental disorders. "When we secrete a lot of adrenaline and cortisol to deal with the ordeal we are going through, we implement all our precautions," explains Guillaume de la Chapelle, a psychiatrist at the Enesia Hospital in Lyon.

"At this level, symptoms of depression appear as we are unable to manage difficult situations or even return to engaging in rewarding behaviors or activities that are a source of enjoyment for us," La Chapelle added.

And the psychiatrist assumes that during this ordeal, individuals ignore many problems, which reappear once the ordeal is overcome. He considers that "when we go into this experience or live in conflict with it, we focus on a specific problem."

In fact, what the brain prefers to do and even master is the task of fragmentation and avoiding conflicts of ideas. But when all of these neglected little troubles reappear, they have evolved greatly. Thus our energy is depleted and dealing with it is more difficult, according to doctor La Chapelle.

Here, the involuntary role of those around us should not be overlooked. "People close to us may be less present when things seem to be going well," La Chapelle notes.

On the other hand, a weary person sometimes does not have the ability to gather loved ones around him or feel guilty for continuing to do so.

The exhausted person sometimes does not have the ability to gather loved ones around him (Shutterstock)

Energy renewal rather than energy consumption

Finally, a cognitive factor interferes with this issue: when we lose our awakening and exhaust our energy, we are pushing ourselves to collapse. Psychologist Bertelon describes this physiological reaction as necessary and savior, as "our body system works tightly, because by relaxing it forces us to stop and restore our strength. This is a protection mechanism."

This stage often leads to questioning ourselves and making changes in our lives. For example, who did not change his job after suffering from professional psychological burnout, or changed his life after suffering a long-term illness, or revisited his priorities after losing Aziz?

And if this collapse is necessary at times, it can be expected that it will happen through an individual’s awareness of his condition and the implementation of strategies that allow us to meet our needs during the resistance phase, by renewing energy instead of consuming it.

To illustrate this, the psychologist is very similar to what we sometimes go through with something we live in our daily lives. "In our mobile phone, we can see the battery charge. When this percentage reaches 5%, we will not be able to enjoy watching videos online. The problem for humans is that This percentage cannot be recognized, but there are warning signs such as: sleep, appetite, or mood that indicate it. So you must take care of your capabilities and know your limits. "

Bertelon concludes that psychological education is an essential means to prevent the psychological difficulties that each of us may suffer from. "The more people become aware of what is happening inside them, the more they can control it, which creates a feeling of reassurance. It may be difficult to live with the experience of collapse, but it must be understood that Fighting it will have more negative consequences than accepting its livelihood. "