Stress can be defined as the physical and emotional response to a demand or challenge. According to the Global Organization for Stress, 75% of Americans report struggling with moderate to severe stress levels in the past 30 days. In other words 3 out of 4 people are living their lives in incredible amounts of stress. However, we are able to find effective ways to engage in stress management.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!We live in a fast-paced world. Feeling stressed is inevitable at this point. Despite this being the norm, it is essential to understand and manage our stress on a daily basis. Not all stress is “bad stress” but there are certainly common reasons for increased level of distress. Normal things, such as, work, relationships, finances and health can make us feel as we have increased demands with little to no resources.
In order to understand and manage our stress effectively, we will explore 8 questions that can help us thrive on daily basis.
1. What Is Stress and Why Do We Experience It?
Now, stress is necessary for our overall wellness. There are responsibilities that we need to take care of. Stress helps us grow, mature and to develop skills and strengths that we didn’t know we have. There’s also “eustress”, which is the stress that comes with doing something pleasurable. For example, planning a vacation has a pleasant reward but the planning itself can bring some stress. You see? It’s not all that bad! It becomes bad when it is unmanageable. Acute stress is short-term and it suddenly comes in response to a specific event or situation. On the other hand, chronic stress is a pervasive state of stress that persists over months, weeks or even years. When we are faced with stress, our body engages in a fight or flight response, which enables us to potentially handle the stressor. It is built for survival. Our nervous system releases hormones, such as, cortisol and adrenaline, that help us respond to these triggers.
2. How Can You Tell If You’re Experiencing Unhealthy Levels of Stress?
Due to the normal fast-paced society we are living in, it can be easy to become used to being in a constant state of distress. Without engaging in mindfulness, it can be easy to miss the warning signs that we are stressed. It is important to be aware of when we are starting to experience unhealthy levels of stress. Take some time to reflect and evaluate if you are experiencing any of the following symptoms:
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Physical symptoms: Many people will experience headaches, fatigue, sleep issues, gastrointestinal issues, body aches or chest pain without a clear medical cause. If all medical reasons have been ruled out, then these symptoms could be an indication of chronic stress.
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Emotional signs: Sometimes you can miss the physical symptoms but may notice emotional signs such as, irritability, anxiety and even sadness.
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Behavioral changes: People react differently to stress. A combination of the physical and emotional symptoms can lead to changes in behavior, such as isolation, poor appetite and substance use.
Here’s a quick quiz that can help you test your level of stress.
3. What are the Most Common Causes of Stress Today?
We all have different circumstances that may be more stressful than others. Our distress tolerance also plays a role in who a specific situation contributes or not to our stress level.
Work-related stress:
Research has found that working over 45 hours a week on a constant basis can be detrimental to our health. If you are pressured to meet deadlines and work in a toxic environment, your response to these stressors can be heightened and lead to burn out.
Relationship and family dynamics:
While there are positive aspects of relationships, the truth is that they do come with their set of stressors. Even positive family interactions are prone to becoming a stressor at some point. While our children are incredible blessings, let’s be real—raising them takes a lot of work
Financial insecurity:
We all need money to live but we don’t have to be a slave to it. Financial instability is one of the leading cause of stress nowadays. This particular stressor can impact other areas of our lives so it is common for this cause to be a source of stress.
Health concerns:
Unexpected illness and injury can decrease our productivity, which then can lead to additional stressors. If caught in the stress cycle, then our health concerns can aggravate, which in turn causes more stress.
Global/social pressures:
These are the things that feel like they are beyond us and are above our every day life. The news, social media and climate anxiety can add to our daily stress.
4. How Does Stress Affect Your Body, Brain, and Behavior?
Stress not only affects our psychological wellbeing but our physical health as well.
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Brain function: Cognitive health refers to the state of a person’s cognitive abilities, which encompass a range of mental processes including memory, attention, problem-solving, decision-making, language, and perception. Chronic stress can impair cognitive function, affecting memory, concentration, and decision-making abilities. It can also contribute to the development of cognitive disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later in life. memory, concentration, mood regulation
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Immune system and chronic illnesses: Chronic stress weakens the immune system, making individuals more susceptible to infections and illnesses. It can also slow down wound healing and increase inflammation in the body, exacerbating conditions such as asthma, arthritis, and skin disorders. If you are constantly getting sick without a medical explanation, it might be worth the shot to consider your stress levels as a contributing factor to constant illness.
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Effects on relationships and performance: Stress can lead to avoidance, constant arguments and social withdrawal. It can also lead to social withdrawal.
If left untreated, some of these effects can go from short term to long term.
5. What Are Healthy vs. Unhealthy Ways People Cope With Stress?
How you deal with your stress is up to you. Our mind and body will eventually choose a way to cope with the stress but it is up to you to choose a healthy or an unhealthy coping mechanism.
Let’s start with the healthy coping mechanisms:
- Exercise
- Deep breathing exercises
- Journaling
- Meditation or Prayer
- Going to therapy
Want more? Read our 7 Ways to Relieve Stress blog post.
No judgment and I am sure we have all used one of these unhealthy coping mechanisms before, but here are some unhealthy ways to cope with stress:
- Overworking
- Substance use
- Avoiding responsibility
- Self-harm
We all have different ways of coping. Some of us choose emotion-focused coping strategies and their purpose is to regulate your emotional response to a stressor. On the other hand, some people choose problem-focused coping strategies, which focus primarily on managing the stressor rather than dealing with the emotion related to the stressor.
6. Can Stress Ever Be a Good Thing?
What if I told you that stress can actually be a good thing? There is such thing called “eustress”, which is defined as a positive type of stress that happens in response to a challenge opportunity. This type of stress promotes resilience, skill building and growth. Some people find motivation and perform better under pressure. We express eustress when it helps us achieve personal growth and accomplish our goals. If life was completely “stress-less” it would be pretty boring, don’t you think? It is important to find the “optimal stress” zone, which is the area that stress actually serves you a purpose.
7. How Can You Manage or Reduce Stress in Daily Life?
We can learn to adopt a holistic and preventative approach to stress management by engaging in lifestyle changes. Small but mighty lifestyle changes can include getting adequate sleep, maintaining a healthy diet and engaging in daily physical activity. As part of your morning routine, you can begin to implement deep, breathing exercises, meditation, prayer, and grounding skills, even when you are not feeling stressed. Many times our stress comes because we feel like we have much to do and too little time. Skills such as time management and healthy boundaries setting can’t help us prioritize what matters at a given season of life. In addition to these practical skills, you can incorporate your spiritual practices to manage your stress. Finding faith within your sacred text, engaging in prayer or daily reflection can help you offload the mental overwhelm of your stressors. If you find that you are implementing healthy coping skills and making several lifestyle changes, but you continue to struggle with stress it is time to seek professional help. Sometimes an unbiased professional can help you see things from a different perspective and develop tools that will be more effective.
8. What Resources and Support Systems Are Available for Stress?
There are several therapeutic approaches that can help manage stress. My favorite “go-tos” are evidenced based treatments such as CBT, EMDR and mindfulness-based therapy.
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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT):
CBT is an evidenced based practice that has been found to help reframe negative thought patterns surrounding experiences. It focuses on identifying and restructuring negative thought patterns that contribute to anxiety.
- EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, a unique and evidence-based form of therapy primarily used to help individuals heal from trauma. Developed by Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s, EMDR has gained widespread recognition for its ability to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other emotional difficulties related to painful or distressing memories.
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In addition to evidenced based therapeutic approaches, you can learn to manage your stress in between sessions by attending support groups and seeking out other community resources. With our modern technology managing stress can be as simple as downloading an app such as, Headspace, Calm or other apps that can help you develop journaling prompts to manage your stress.
You do not have to struggle with your stress alone. Taking the time to talk to your friends and family about your stress can be the key and seeking the professional help that you need. Often times it is helpful to name the exact feeling that you are experiencing related to your stressors in order that you can find the appropriate help. If you find that you have implemented several strategies and have thought support from your support system, but you are continuing to experience stress, then it is time to seek counseling.
Conclusion
It is important to learn to recognize stress in order to avoid for the symptoms to turn into other medical conditions. Becoming aware of the physical emotional and behavioral signs is important to engage in the appropriate stress management strategies. Stress doesn’t always have to be a negative thing. However, you do not have to wait until your stress is out of control in order to seek help. Whether you’re trying the strategies we discussed or ready to schedule an appointment, today is a great day to take control of your stress.
NOTE: Although I am a mental health professional, the information I provide should not be considered a substitute for a formal mental health evaluation. If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health issues, you can contact us at (407) 906-5214. Mental health is a complex and highly individualized matter, and what works for one person may not work for another. The best step for anyone facing mental health concerns is to schedule an appointment for a personalized evaluation and care. Please remember that seeking help from a licensed mental health expert is a vital step in addressing mental health challenges. If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call emergency services or a crisis helpline immediately.