Have you ever felt like there was just too much to accomplish and never enough time? If so, you are not alone. In fact, most of us will feel overwhelmed by our workload at some point in our lives. Stress is inevitable. Even if we may not constantly be aware of it, stress and exhaustion are always present. As a matter of fact, it can make us physically ill.
Everyone knows what it’s like to be stressed from time to time. When asked to define stress, most individuals will say that it is an unpleasant feeling that is the result of pressure. But there’s a lot more to it than that; how it connects to our adrenal glands, our sleep, and our “fight or flight” reaction.
IN THIS ARTICLE
06. Conclusion
What Is Stress?
To put it simply, stress is any life event that challenges one’s ability to adapt physically, emotionally, or mentally. When you’re faced with a situation that demands your full attention or prompts you to take some kind of action, your body experiences stress. The body’s stress response is intended to help protect you from harm. It triggers a cascade of chemicals that prime the body for flight or fight. The fight-or-flight response is a typical term for this phenomenon.
Humans have a partly physical response to a challenge or threat. The body prepares itself to either stay and face the threat head-on or flee as quickly as possible.
Average stress levels in the United States in 2018 were 4.9 on a scale from 1 to 10 according to the American Psychological Association’s (APA) annual stress survey. According to the results, financial and job-related concerns were the most common sources of stress.
Stressors are the external stimuli that cause this response. Things like loud noises, aggressive people, a fast car, terrifying scenes in movies, and even a first date might trigger anxiety. The more stressors in one’s life, the more stressed out one is likely to feel.
What Can Cause Stress?
Stress can be brought on by a wide variety of factors. There could be a single major incident or circumstance in your life that is causing you stress. It could also be the result of a combination of many separate factors.
Stressors are the things like conditions or forces that might lead to stress. Common examples of stressors are having a heavy workload or having a strained relationship. Stressful, nevertheless, can be something that requires a lot of effort.
You might be stressed if:
- Think you’re under a lot of pressure
- Encounter major life changes
- Concern about something
- Hardly or no influence over how things turn out
- Feel like you’re drowning in your responsibilities
- You don’t have enough to do, and your life is too stagnant.
- Feel the effects of prejudice, animosity, or abuse
- Currently find themselves in a period of change
Some cause of stress is internal like:
- Pessimism
- Lack of tolerance for uncertainty
- Thinking that is too set in its ways and cannot adapt
- Criticizing oneself
- Inability to accept anything less than perfection / perfectionism
- Take-it-or-leave-it mentality
SIGNS OF STRESS
Knowing the signs can help you learn to manage stress. Recognizing stress and its sign can give you heads up if what you are already experiencing stress overload. By Knowing the early sign, you can better take care of yourself or your loved ones experiencing great stress.
1. Anxiety and/or Depression
Chronic stress has been linked to depression and episodes of depression in certain research.
Depressive episodes were linked to both short-term and long-term stress in a study of 816 depressed women.
Another study linked excessive stress to the development of severe depressive disorder in young people.
Another review from 2018 stressed the link between depression and prolonged or constant stress.
Consulting a mental health professional is the way to know if you are already experiencing this mental health problems. Anxiety and depression should be addressed right with the help of health professionals.
2. Chronic pain
Increased stress levels have been linked to physical complaints like aches and pains. One of the main stress hormones in the body, cortisol, has been linked to increased stress levels, which may be a factor in chronic pain.
One small research compared persons with chronic back pain to a control group. The study indicated that people with chronic pain tend to have greater cortisol levels.
In a different study , found that 18 people who suffer from chronic pain have greater amounts of cortisol in their hair, which was considered as an unique sign of prolonged stress.
Remember that these studies just demonstrate a correlation and do not investigate any possible underlying reasons.
3. Shifts in sexual desire
It’s common for people to experience shifts in sex drive when under stress.
Thirty women participated in a brief study that monitored their sexual arousal as they watched an erotic film and then assessed their stress levels. Sexual arousal was lower in people with high levels of chronic stress compared to those with lesser stress.
Over 1,000 women were questioned for a research released in 2021 on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on women’s reproductive health, and 45% of them reported a decrease in libido as a result of the stress they were under.
4. Changes in Appetite
When under stress, it’s typical to lose or gain an appetite.
As a result of emotional distress, you could either lose your appetite completely or start eating excessively without realizing it.
In a short study conducted in 2006, 272 female college students reported changes in their appetite due to stress, with 62 percent reporting an increase in hunger.
Changes in appetite may also cause swings in weight during stressful situations. Stress has been linked to further weight gain in persons who are already overweight, according to a study of 1,355 Americans.
5. Rapid heartbeat
The adrenaline hormone is released in response to a stressful incident, and this causes the heart rate and blood pressure to increase temporarily (but only temporarily, according to the American Heart Association). This is one mechanism through which chronic stress contributes to a racing heart.
Several studies have linked elevated levels of stress to increased pulse rate. Heart rate may also rise in response to stressful situations or activities.
But you should take note that increase in heartbeat don’t necessarily mean that you have heart health problems. Though some cases sjoes that too much stress and anxiety can cause heart attack.
6. Fatigue and sleeping problems
Chronic fatigue and sleep disturbances brought on by stress over an extended period of time can have an adverse effect on one’s energy levels.
Fatigue was found to be “significantly correlated” with work-related stress in a recent research of over 7,000 working individuals.
Low energy levels may also result from stress-related sleeplessness. Journal of Sleep Research released a review in 2018 that indicated “stress-related concern and rumination” might interrupt sleep, which increases the chance of developing insomnia.
Another study of 2,316 participants indicated that exposure to stress was connected with an increased risk of sleeplessness. . The two studies compare and contrast the effects of stress on sleep reactivity, or how quickly one goes to sleep and how long one stays asleep.
While it’s true that stress can make it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep, it’s also true that not everyone who has to deal with stress or who goes through a stressful time also might experience trouble sleeping.
How To Manage Stress
Now that you know the causes and signs of stress. How to manage it will be the last step. It is now your duty to manage the sources of stress you may experience. You can follow these tips to manage stress:
Learn To Slow Down
It’s important to take it easy now and again because of how hectic modern life can be. Think about your daily routine and come up with some simple approaches to achieve that goal.
Most of the time, we beat ourselves up because we didn’t get enough done in a day. But taking things slowly isn’t always a bad idea. There’s no harm in sleeping in on a Sunday.
Exercise
Successfully tried and tested, One of the finest methods to calm your body and mind is to engage in regular physical activity. Furthermore, regular exercise has been shown to elevate emotional state. However, the benefits only accrue with consistent effort.
How many times per week should you hit the gym? Get in as much as 75 minutes of intensive exercise every week, such as swimming laps, jogging, or other sports, or 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate exercise, such as brisk walking.
If you want to stay motivated to exercise, it’s important to create realistic goals. Remember that any exercise is preferable to none at all.
Loosen Up Those Muscles
When you’re stressed, your muscles go tense. You may help with the process of unwinding and reviving your body by:
- Stretching
- Enjoying a massage
- Taking a hot bath or shower
- Achieving a restful night’s sleep
- Take a Deep Breath
The right breathing techniques can help us relax physically and emotionally. Immediately releasing tension is as simple as pausing to take a deep breath. Once you master it, you’ll be surprised at the difference it makes in your health.
Meditation
There must be a good explanation why it has persisted for over 5,000 years. Meditation is effective for many people and has numerous positive effects. Improved sleep, energy, and mood are just some of the side effects of reduced stress, anxiety, and chronic pain.
Techniques for meditation are shared widely online and may prove helpful. Yoga is another popular option for those looking to meditate. Among the components of this practice include deep breathing techniques, meditation, and stretching.
Get In Touch With Others
Connection with other people is incomparable. Time with someone who will listen is time well spent. It’s a healthy method for relieving anxiety and tension. In-person interactions trigger the production of oxytocin, a hormone that inhibits the body’s natural “fight or flight” response. You let your guard down.
Consult Professional Help
Anxiety and stress can have negative physical and psychological effects. You can better handle your stress by seeking advice from a professional.
Watch What You Eat
A healthy body equals a healthy mind. In addition to physical activity, what you eat can have an impact on your ability to deal with stress. Keeping a healthy diet and regular exercise routine can have a profound effect on how well you handle stress.
As an added bonus, taking supplements can help you deal with regular stress. Vitamins and minerals, like those found in Juju EasySports, have been shown to alleviate stress-related symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, and disturbed sleep. This effervescent tablet electrolyte boosts energy, enhances focus, and lessens fatigue thanks to its combination of green tea, potassium, and guarana extract. You can avail it here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How serious is stress?
Indeed, physical, mental, and behavioural changes can occur as a result of stress. Recognizing the signs of stress early will help you deal with it. Untreated stress has been linked to hypertension, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes, among other conditions.
How do I check my stress level?
Due to its subjective nature, stress cannot be objectively diagnosed outside of clinical trials.
How long can a person live with stress?
They lose 2.8 years of life expectancy due to stress. A team of researchers from the Finnish Institute of Health and Welfare came up with these findings by analysing the effects of several risk factors, particularly those connected to one’s way of life, on the average lifespan of men and women.
What happens if stress lasts too long?
However, prolonged and continuous exposure to stress can have devastating effects. Anxiety, insomnia, muscle discomfort, elevated blood pressure, and a compromised immune system are just a few of the many negative effects that chronic stress may have on our physical and mental health.
Conclusion
Stress is something that every single person goes through, and it’s not always miserable. Don’t panic if you start to experience indicators of stress in your life, but also don’t brush them off as insignificant. Instead, learn to cope with stress so it doesn’t overwhelm you.
There will always be something you want in life but can’t seem to get it, something you’re tired of doing, or an issue that doesn’t seem to have a solution. This is inevitable and cannot be avoided. It’s okay to have some stress about things; the key is to learn effective stress management techniques and to not be afraid to seek professional assistance when you need it.