Your body responds to any type of demand or threat by producing stress. When you sense danger, the “fight-or-flight” reaction kicks in, which is a rapid, automatic process.
The stress response is the body’s way of protecting you. When the body is working properly, it helps to keep you alert and energetic. Stress can be beneficial in an emergency as it can give you extra strength or reflexes.
Stress can also have positive aspects, sometimes called “eustress.” For example, it can help you meet challenges such as staying focused during a work presentation, concentrating when you’re trying to make a game-winning free throw, or studying for an exam when you’d rather be watching TV.
Excessive stress can have negative effects on your health. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by stress, it can negatively affect every aspect of your life, from your health to your mood, productivity, and relationships. This, in turn, can lead to a decline in the quality of your life.
If you find yourself feeling frazzled and overwhelmed frequently, it’s time to take action to bring your nervous system back into balance. You can protect yourself from the harmful effects of chronic stress by learning to recognize the signs and symptoms and taking steps to reduce it.
How stress works: The body’s fight-or-flight response
Your nervous system releases stress hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol, when you feel threatened. These hormones rouse the body for emergency action. As your adrenaline levels increase, you may experience these physical symptoms. The physical changes that come with the adrenaline rush prepare your body to either fight or flee from the danger at hand.
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The effects of chronic stress
Your nervous system cannot tell the difference between an emotional threat and a physical threat. Your body reacts to stressors the same way whether they are real or imagined. The easier it becomes to trigger your emergency stress system, the harder it is to shut off.
If you are frequently stressed out, your body may be in a heightened state of stress most of the time. And that can lead to serious health problems. Chronic stress disrupts nearly every system in your body. Excessive stress can have negative effects on your health, including weakening your immune system, disrupting your digestive and reproductive systems, and increasing your risk of heart attack and stroke. Additionally, stress can speed up the aging process. It can even damage the brain, leaving you more vulnerable to anxiety, depression, and other mental health problems.
Health problems caused or exacerbated by stress include:
- Depression and anxiety
- Pain of any kind
- Sleep problems
- Autoimmune diseases
- Digestive problems
- Skin conditions, such as eczema, stress rash, or hives
- Heart disease
- Weight problems
- Reproductive issues
- Thinking and memory problems
Causes of stress
Stressors are defined as the situations and pressures that cause stress. We tend to think of stressors as being negative, such as an exhaustive work schedule or a rocky relationship. Anything that requires a lot from you can be overwhelming. This includes happy events such as getting married, buying a house, going to college, or receiving a promotion.
Many people are simply more prone to anxiety than others Many people are simply more prone to anxiety than others, which of course can lead to stress. Stress can be caused by things that are out of your control, like work or school, or by your own thoughts and feelings. When you worry excessively about something that may or may not happen, or have irrational, pessimistic thoughts about life, it’s called self-generated or internal stress.
The way you perceive stress can play a role in how much it affects you. What stresses you out may not bother someone else; they may even enjoy it. Some people are terrified of getting up in front of people to perform or speak, for example, while others live for the spotlight. When work demands increase, one person may perform better while another may shut down. Even if you don’t mind helping to take care of your elderly parents, your siblings may find the whole process to be very stressful.
Common external causes of stress include:
- Major life changes
- Work or school
- Relationship difficulties
- Financial problems
- Being too busy
- Children and family
Common internal causes of stress include:
- Pessimism
- Inability to accept uncertainty
- Rigid thinking, lack of flexibility
- Negative self-talk
- Unrealistic expectations / perfectionism
- All-or-nothing attitude
What Are The Long Term Effects Of Stress? (17 Symptoms to Know)
1. Depression
If you’re constantly stressed, you’ll eventually become unhappy. Depression is a serious mental health condition that can cause physical symptoms like fatigue, isolation, and suicidal thoughts. In other words, it is important to learn how to cope with your depression.
2. Immune Deficiencies
If your body is expending a lot of energy, your immune system will be weakened. If you don’t take care of your health, you are more likely to get sick. If you’re already sick, it’s harder for your body to get well.
If you’re experiencing symptoms like stress hives, frequent colds or other signs that your immune system may be weakened, pay attention and take steps to improve your immunity.
3. Lack Of Sleep
This is because when you’re stressed, you tend to have racing thoughts that make it hard to wind down at night and fall asleep. Sleep is absolutely pertinent to your health.
If you’re not getting enough sleep, you’re going to have a lot of problems. Remember, sleep is the time when your body recharges. If you’re constantly stressed, your body will never be able to function at its best. If you’re finding it hard to sleep because you’re stressed, here are some tips that might help.
4. Anger
You probably know that stress can make you short-tempered and irritable. If you don’t address your stress, it will continue to build and become worse and worse. Eventually, this will lead to intense anger.
5. Aging Rapidly
Long-term stress can cause you to age rapidly. Not only does stress age you cosmetically, but it also makes you feel older.
If you don’t manage your stress levels, you’ll end up looking and feeling much older than you actually are. If you’re constantly stressed, it can lead to physical changes like wrinkles, bags under your eyes, and hair loss. You need to take action and solve this problem before it becomes a bigger issue.
6. Weight Loss
When people are feeling stressed, they may start to eat more in order to cope with their emotions. This can lead to weight gain. Chronic stress can cause weight loss.
Sometimes stress can cause you to lose your appetite or forget to eat.
7. Drink Excessively
There are a lot of people who deal with stress in unhealthy ways. One of the most common issues is excessive drinking of alcohol. If you are one of the people who drink alcohol often, you need to know that it is not good for your health.
If you drink an excessive amount of alcohol, it will have negative consequences on your physical and mental health. If you’re not careful, drinking too much can be fatal.
8. Isolation
Many people actually force themselves to be alone when they become overwhelmed with stress. This might not seem like a big problem in the beginning, but it can be a major problem later on.
Being isolated from others can have a big impact on your mental well-being. The reason why it is used as a form of punishment in prisons is because it is very uncomfortable.
We are social beings and are meant to interact with other people.
9. Headaches
Most people will experience headaches at some point in their lives. Just remember that some headaches are natural. Some illnesses are caused by stress.
One of the most difficult aspects of stress headaches is that they can eventually turn into migraines. If you have migraines, it can significantly impact your life and make it difficult to do everyday activities.
10. Decreased Libido
If you’ve experienced chronic stress, you may have also noticed a decrease in your sex drive. If your partner doesn’t want to be intimate, it could be because they’re stressed.
Prolonged stress can detrimentally impact your libido. Some women might notice changes in their menstrual cycle. Although it may seem counterintuitive, having sex can actually help to reduce stress levels. So in a way, it’s a bit of a Catch-22 situation.
11. Anxiety
Stress and anxiety often go hand-in-hand. Anxiety often makes stress worse, as feeling anxious all the time can be very stressful in itself.
Anxiety can negatively affect every part of your life if it is not addressed. This includes your job, your relationships, and your family. There are several ways to deal with anxiety without medication, such as meditation, yoga, and counseling.
12. Heart Palpitations
Stress can also cause your heart to flutter. This is more dangerous than you could ever imagine. There are many potential causes for an irregular heartbeat, some of which are quite serious.
If you suffer from stress, you are more likely to have a heart attack in the future. Stress management is an important part of maintaining a healthy heart.
13. Chronic Fatigue
If you feel more tired than usual when you’re stressed, it’s likely because your body is using more energy to deal with the stress. Well, it’s because stress leads to fatigue. As we stated before, one of the consequences of long-term stress is a lack of sleep, which means you are constantly tired when you are awake.
There is a big difference between feeling tired and suffering from chronic fatigue. Many people suffer from chronic fatigue, and it is far worse than most people could imagine.
14. Overeating
Some people may overeat when they are stressed. Many people will suffer from overeating. This is equally as bad as not eating enough.
If you’re eating too much, you might become obese, which can cause other health problems like diabetes, heart disease, and more. These problems will follow you throughout your life and will cause many problems.
15. Drug Abuse
If you are addicted to a serious drug, it is likely that you will have a terrible experience. The most positive outcome that can occur is that you will eventually stop taking the drugs, but you will then have to experience withdrawal, which is not a pleasant experience. If you are not careful, you may end up overdosing in the future.
Try one of these healthy alternatives to drugs the next time you’re feeling stressed.
16. Suicidal Thoughts
Most people who are stressed don’t know how to cope with it. This makes them angry and causes them to act out negatively. Some people lash out at others when they’re angry, but others will take their anger out on themselves. If you fit into this category, your stress may eventually cause you to feel suicidal.
This is a very serious problem that needs to be fixed right away. Otherwise, your life might be cut drastically short. Or else, things could get worse. If you’re thinking these types of thoughts, you should seek help from a professional as soon as possible, because things could get worse.
17. Memory Loss
Long-term stress can negatively impact your memory. It doesn’t matter if it’s something small like misplacing your keys or something big like forgetting to pick up your kids from school.
There are certain foods you can eat to help improve your memory and fight against memory loss. Foods like avocados, blueberries and broccoli are all great for brain health. There are also supplements that claim to help with memory loss.
IN OTHER WORDS, it is important to learn how to deal with stress in order to have a happy and healthy life.
Improving your ability to handle stress
Get moving. Increasing your activity level is a good way to help relieve stress and feel better.
Connect to others. Talking to another person can help relieve stress when you are feeling agitated or insecure.
Engage your senses. There are several ways to reduce stress quickly, one of which is by stimulating one or more of your senses. This can be done by sight, sound, taste, smell, touch, or movement.
Learn to relax. Even though you can’t get rid of stress entirely, you can still manage how much it impacts you.
Eat a healthy diet. Your mood and ability to cope with stress can be affected by the food you eat.
Get your rest. If you’re feeling tired, you may be more likely to experience stress because you might start thinking irrationally. It can also lead to insomnia and other sleep disorders Chronic stress can prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep. It can also cause insomnia and other sleep disorders.
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