Stimulation is the encouragement of development or thecause of activity in general. For example, "The press provides stimulation of political discourse." An interesting or fun activity can be described as "stimulating", regardless of its physical effects on senses.Stimulate means to act as a stimulus to;stimulus means something that rouses the recipient to activity;stimuli is the plural ofstimulus.
A particular use of the term isphysiological stimulation, which refers tosensory excitation, the action of various agents or forms of energy (stimuli) on receptors that generateimpulses that travel throughnerves to the brain (afferents). There aresensory receptors on or near the surface of the body, such as photoreceptors in the retina of the eye,hair cells in the cochlea of the ear, touch receptors in the skin and chemical receptors in the mouth and nasal cavity. There are also sensory receptors in themuscles, joints, digestive tract, and membranes around organs such as the brain, the abdominal cavity, the bladder and the prostate (providing one source ofsexual stimulation). Stimulation to the external or internal senses may evoke involuntary activity or guide intentions in action. Such emotional or motivating stimulation typically is also experienced subjectively (enters awareness, is in consciousness). Perception can be regarded as conceptualised stimulation, used in reasoning and intending, for example. When bodily stimulation is perceived it is traditionally called a sensation, such as a kind of touch or a taste or smell, or a painful or pleasurable sensation. This can be thought of aspsychological stimulation, which is a stimulus affecting a person's thinking or feeling processes.
Stimulation, in general, refers to how organisms perceive incoming stimuli. As such it is part of thestimulus-response mechanism. Simple organisms broadly react in three ways to stimulation: too little stimulation causes them to stagnate, too much to die fromstress or inability to adapt, and a medium amount causes them to adapt and grow as they overcome it. Similar categories or effects are noted with psychological stress with people. Thus, stimulation may be described as how external events provoke a response by an individual in the attempt tocope.[1]
It is possible to becomehabituated to a particular degree of stimulation, and then find it uncomfortable to have a significant change from that level of the stimulus. Thus one can become used to intense stimuli or a fast-paced life and sufferwithdrawal when they are removed. Stress and unhappiness may result an unaccustomed level of stimulation.[citation needed]
Ongoing, long-term stimulation can for some individuals prove harmful, and a more relaxed and less stimulated life may be beneficial despite possible initial discomfort or stress from the change. See also;sensory overload andburnout.[citation needed]
Chiropractor James Wilson has hypothesized that long-term overstimulation can result eventually in a phenomenon calledadrenal fatigue, but there is no evidence that such a condition exists.[2]
