Stress SOS: Spot the Signs and Reclaim Your Calm
Learn how to spot the sneaky signs of stress and get ahead of it before it spirals out of control. With easy, effective tips, you’ll be able to manage stress like a pro and protect your peace.
Have you ever been plagued by persistent, worrisome thoughts about something in your life that you can't seem to shake? Have you noticed yourself reacting sharply to loved ones for reasons that aren’t their fault? Or perhaps you’re feeling unusually exhausted or tense during everyday tasks? These could all be signs that you’re dealing with stress that you might not have fully acknowledged.
Many situations can cause you stress. Things that cause stress are called stressors. They can be positive or negative, it’s just that they trigger the body’s stress response. Examples of positive stressors could be something like going on a first date, taking an exam or doing a presentation at work. Examples of negative stressors could be something like fighting with someone you love, getting fired from your job or being diagnosed with an illness. These examples all have a very different impact on your life but they are all stressors. Some life stressors can be easily managed like the first date while others can be quite difficult to manage like being fired from your job.
Stress doesn’t just affect one part of your body. Stress affects numerous systems within us, including our metabolism, memory, and immune system. Have you ever gone to take an important test and forgotten the answer to a question you know you prepared for? Or maybe you had an intense project at work, only to come down with a cold as soon as it was finished? That’s stress making its mark.
Recognizing the Signs of Stress
Stress can manifest in many different ways. It can have mental, physical, and emotional effects, which can sometimes be hard to spot. You may not realize you are stressed as you might not have a particular event that comes to mind you would think is stressful. Let’s look at the emotional, physical and cognitive symptoms of stress.
Some emotional signs of stress include:
Irritability
Feeling overwhelmed
Racing thoughts
A sense of dread
Anxiety
Depression
Some physical symptoms of stress include:
Fatigue
Rashes
Weight gain or loss
Chest pains
Difficulty breathing
High blood pressure
Sore eyes or blurry vision
Muscle tension
Digestive issues
Some cognitive symptoms of stress include:
Memory issues
Problems concentrating
Focus on the negative
Constant worrying
Difficulty making decisions
Stress can also have an impact on a person creating behavioural changes. Stress can make people behave in ways that they haven’t previously. These behavioural changes are ways a person is trying to cope with the stress they are experiencing. For example, when stressed some people may struggle with their memory, agitation, or restlessness. Some people may procrastinate or neglect their normal responsibilities due to stress. Some may use other unhealthy coping methods, such as overspending or gambling. Some may turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with their stress.
Acute vs. Chronic Stress
There are also two types of stress you can experience. There is acute stress and chronic stress. Acute stress is the type of stress in your life that is short-term stress. It is triggered by a specific event and is resolved quickly. Acute stressors could be an argument with a loved one, or taking an exam. Chronic stress, in contrast, is persistent and extends over a long period, often weeks or months. It can be both debilitating and overwhelming, characterized by continuous, pervasive worry about various concerns. An example of chronic stress would be worrying about getting laid off from your job. It’s not that you have been told about layoffs at the company, or that your performance at work has been poor, it's a general worry you have daily about losing your job. It’s not about a specific event but a constant worry.
The Health Consequences of Chronic Stress
Acute stress when managed well, is short lived and goes as quickly as it came. It doesn’t have a big impact on your physical, mental or emotional well being. On the other hand, chronic stress lasts for so long that it can have a huge impact on your health. With chronic stress your body is running in a constant state of emergency which is not a level of stress a person can live at for a prolonged period of time without health consequences. When you're under stress, your nervous system releases stress hormones, with cortisol being the primary one. In the case of chronic stress, cortisol and other stress hormones are continuously released into your bloodstream. This persistent exposure to cortisol can interfere with many bodily functions and disrupt almost all of your body's processes.
Stress contributes to as much as 80% of all major illnesses including: back problems, cardiovascular, cancer, endocrine and metabolic disease, infectious ailments, skin disorders, and a precursor of psychological difficulties like anxiety and depression. Stress can exacerbate many health conditions someone could have.
Stress symptoms can affect your body, your thoughts and feelings, and your behavior. Knowing common stress symptoms can help you manage them. Stress that's not dealt with can lead to many health problems, such as high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, stroke, and heart disease. By learning ways to deal with stress we can ensure we aren’t adding this additional factor to our health outcome.
Common Symptoms of Chronic Stress
Common symptoms of chronic stress you might experience include:
isolation or emotional withdrawal
low energy
aches and pains
trouble sleeping
trouble staying focused
changes in appetite
Strategies for Healthy Stress Management
Stress is a natural part of life. It’s not like you can avoid all stress for the rest of your life to ensure you don’t have any of the symptoms described earlier. There will always be stressful events that happen in your life. There are things we need to do though to ensure we are having a better reaction to stress.
To respond to stress in a healthy way, it's crucial to return to a balanced state after a stressful event has ended. The goal is to avoid living in a constant state of chronic stress, where your body is persistently exposed to cortisol, affecting your overall health. Learning effective stress management techniques is essential to prevent stress from negatively impacting your life. Mental fitness plays a key role in maintaining well-being during stressful times. It involves being aware of your feelings, thoughts, and behaviors, which allows you to handle challenges more effectively and make clearer decisions.
There are several science-backed strategies to reduce stress effectively. These techniques not only enhance your resilience in the face of challenges but also improve your focus and response to stressful situations. By incorporating these practices into your daily routine, you can foster a calmer mental state, which positively influences your decision-making and overall well-being.
Mindfulness practice - Practicing mindfulness is an excellent way to be in the present moment, which takes you out of the headspace of worrying. Mindfulness means living in the present moment with acceptance and without judgment. It means that you are aware in the present moment and engaged with your surroundings. Mindfulness is a state of intentional, nonjudgmental focus on the present moment. To find out more about mindfulness practices, head to this article where we lay it all out for you.
Meditation practice - Meditation is a technique to develop awareness of the present moment. The more you are in the present moment the less stress you are putting on your body! There are many types of meditation you can try to find out what is best for you. Check out our article regarding meditation to find out what meditation is and some types of meditation you can practice.
Get better sleep - You’re probably aware of how crucial sleep is to various aspects of your life. Difficulty sleeping can lead to increased stress, and conversely, stress can make it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep throughout the night. This creates a challenging cycle that can be both exhausting and persistent. In the article we have on sleep, you can find some great tips to get out of the loop of lack of sleep and into the land of zzzzzs!
Nutrition - You might not know this but the food you eat has a huge impact on your stress! Cortisol (the hormone we talked about early), is affected by what we eat! To reduce the impact of stress on your body, you want to eat foods that will lower your cortisol levels. Check out our article we have on nutrition to find out what foods are beneficial for combating stress!
Exercise - Exercise is a powerful tool in your stress reduction toolbox. It can help to reduce your stress levels and lessen fatigue, as well as improve alertness and concentration. Don’t worry you don’t need to take up certain types of exercise to have the benefits of stress reduction. It also doesn’t need to be high intensity or require you to spend hours in the gym to see an improvement in your stress levels! Check out our article we have on exercise to find out how exercise can have a positive impact on your stress!
Additional Stress-Relief Techniques
Here are a few other places you can tap into to help reduce your stress:
Checking in with your support system - Friends and family are a great place to reduce stress. Sometimes just talking about your situation with a loved one can help you feel more calm about a situation.
Making time for leisure activities - When we’re stressed, it’s easy to forget that doing something fun or relaxing can actually help us feel better. We often cut out the things we enjoy, thinking they’re not important, but those activities can be some of the best ways to ease stress and boost our mood!
Now that you know what to look out for, you'll be able to spot stress even when there’s no big event causing it. With the tips and techniques we’ve talked about, you’ll be better at managing and lowering your stress levels. While we can’t get rid of stress completely (because, let’s face it, life happens!), you can learn to handle it in a way that keeps it from becoming overwhelming or sticking around too long and becoming chronic.
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