Stress levels on the rise, health on the decline

Everyone knows that when we have increased stress levels in our lives, whether it’s at work or in our personal lives or in these times of financial uncertainty, in due time our health also gets compromised.   We all have had an ongoing stressful situation at one point or another and after a while we tend to get sick. You might not notice it, because it has been happening over a period of time, but one day you wake up and say… “What happened to my body?” Stress levels and health are intimately related.

Here’s a snapshot of what happens when the body is stressed:

• Hormones are released from the adrenal glands to physiologically combat the stress.  Our subconscious nervous system gets locked into the sympathetic mode (fight, fright or flight). Over time our body becomes exhausted, nutritionally depleted and full of excessive waste and toxins.
• Chances are you have probably stopped exercising, eating nutritionally sound meals and have numbed some of the stress with food, alcohol, or other unhealthy choices to combat the stress itself.  At this point, our bodies can no longer adapt to the stress and we start to feels the symptoms of exhaustion.

Some of the most common signs that our body is not functioning as it should include insomnia, fatigue, headaches, sinus congestion, cough, sore throat, general body aches or flu like symptoms.   These signs are often seen as a quick blame on “whatever is going around” and the behavior continues on in the same manner.  Often an over the counter medication is used to alleviate the symptoms, but it fails to address the REAL reason your body is breaking down.

What most of us don’t understand is that stress is really the only disease that we have to fight. You may ask, well how would I or my physician physically IDENTIFY stress on my body?  Here are some simple things you can do to combat stress so it doesn’t slow you down, and interfere with your health:

There are three forms of stress: Mechanical, Emotional, and Nutritional.

MECHANICAL STRESS

Our body is like a car and needs regular mechanical tune ups. To release the physical stress you can do things like exercising which would entail cardiovascular and or strength training, Yoga, Pilates, stretching your body, resting or sleeping more.  To support the times when you are unable to manage self care or are experiencing pain or discomfort, I highly recommend turning to professionals that can offer you massage, physical training, chiropractic care and so on.

EMOTIONAL STRESS

To release emotional stress use techniques like journaling, meditation, or talking things out with a trusted friend or family member. There are also many practitioners in this area to support your well being. Some of my favorite people to go to in these situations are Energetic practitioners or Spiritual counselors.

NUTRITIONAL STRESS

The best way to deal with nutritional stress is to eat a balanced diet, limit your intake of processed foods, eat more nutritionally dense foods like fruits and vegetables and take whole food nutritional supplements to support your body’s extra needs are essential.

In paying attention to stress in these 3 forms we’ve gone over are just a few examples that can help you deal with how stress takes its toll. Please remember that it may also be wise of you to seek a professional’s help.  Ask around for referrals from your friends and family if you don’t have any professionals on your team yet.  It is great to have these people in your pocket when you need them because it is hard to see the picture when you are in the frame yourself.