Why is stress such a big deal?
We all have stress. Jobs, family, friends... money. We all have the big stresses and the little stresses. There are even the good and happy stresses. Personality, psychological issues, hormone imbalances, and numerous other factors also play a role in how we become stressed and deal with stress.
First off, what causes stress?
Stress can be caused by internal or external forces. Internal stressors can be from illness, emotions, worry etc. External are from physical exertion, pain, a bad work environment, etc.
Stress can be acute or chronic. Acute happens in a short burst like being super hungry and not able to eat at that time. Chronic is something that happens over an extended period of time such as family issues, work, or finances.
So what does stress actually DO to the body?
Stress creates a cascade of biological responses in the brain. Most people know of the "fight or flight" response. The brain prepares the body to fight or run away. Hormones that control your blood flow, breathing, memory, emotions, and even your immune system are released.
Increase in blood flow means higher blood pressure. The body also diverts blood to the deeper vessels to provide more oxygen to the deeper muscle tissue and reduce the potential of superficial injury.
Breathing is shallow and rapid to draw in more oxygen.
The immune system reorganizes in order to best combat potential injury and infection. The body increases production of red and white blood cells.
Non-essential body functions (digestion) are reduced.
Saliva production is reduced. Out mouths become dry. Swallowing and talking can become more difficult.
Short and long term memory are affected. Times of high stress and emotion are stored away in long-term memory.
You become more alert, a sort of heightened senses occurs.
Normally once the event is over the body resets. Systems go back to normal functions.
What happens when the system does not reset? This is what happens with chronic stress. The brain keeps reading stimuli as a threat and keeps the body in the fight or flight response.
Eventually the system breaks down. Your body was not meant to maintain that level of awareness and hyper activity.
High blood pressure, stomach and digestive issues, insomnia, heart disease, easily getting sick or slow recovery from illness or infection, these are all possible results of chronic stress.
So what do you do to combat this cycle?
Sometimes the most simple option is to breathe. Focus on breathing deeply and slowly. This can help you calm your heart rate.
Exercise can be very cathartic. It can help people focus on something other than what is stressing them out.
Petting an animal. Seriously. Some studies have shown it helps reduce blood pressure.
Get a massage. Massage can help people reset. It calms the brain, releases tension in the muscle tissue, It helps break the cycle of constant stimuli by changing the kind stimuli the brain is reading. The body can store emotional stress and manifests it as physical pain or restriction. At times by addressing the physical aspect of pain, the emotional side can release as well.
In short, do not just accept stress as something to just live with. Find something you enjoy doing that helps you focus on something good. Stress can have a huge impact on your health. Taking care of yourself mentally and physically is vitally important. We tend to put our own wellness low on the list of "Life's Important Things". It is not selfish to take time for yourself and do something good for you.
