Stress is an evolutionary reaction to situations that threaten us. It alerts us to problems and encourages us to make an appropriate response, whether this is fight or flight. This made sense for our ancestors – they would experience stress when faced with a genuine physical danger and the presence of stress would stir them into either defending themselves or fleeing. But nowadays, stress tends to do us more harm than good. We tend to stress about all sorts of things that aren’t going to create significant or immediate harm to us and this can have a profoundly detrimental impact on our overall happiness, health, and wellbeing.
Physical Impact
Stress can have a major impact on your physical wellbeing. Here are a few symptoms and information on how to combat them.
- Headaches – you should find a suitable suitable treatment for the migraine headaches.
- Muscle Tension – try out massage therapy.
- Fatigue – carry out exercise in the mornings or have a cold shower when you start to feel drowsy.
- Sleep Problems – consult your doctor who can give you further advice and create a treatment plan for you.
Emotional Impact
The emotional consequences of stress can create:
- Anxiety
- Irritability
- Restlessness
- Sadness
- Procrastination or Lack of Motivation
Behavioural Impact
Behavioural impacts of stress include:
- Emotional Outbursts
- Undereating
- Overeating
- Withdrawal from Social Situations
Reducing Stress
If you are experiencing stress, there are various steps that you can take in order to reduce your experience of stress or to reduce your suffering. Here are just a few steps that you might want to consider taking!
Identify the Cause of Your Stress
The first step that you need to take is to identify the cause of your stress. Once you have identified the cause of your stress you can take active steps to combat it. If you find that you are stressed due to debt, you can start making a financial plan to clear your debt. If you are stressed due to problems within your relationship, you can undertake counseling. If you are stressed because of an excessive workload, you can arrange a meeting with your employer to make things more manageable. This is all extremely positive and progressive! If you find that you are experiencing stress for absolutely no logical reason at all, you may be confusing stress with an underlying mental health issue or experiencing stress as a symptom of an underlying mental health issue. It’s extremely important that you consult a doctor as soon as possible. They will be able to diagnose any concerns and offer you treatment that will help to improve your quality of life.
Meditation
Meditation is an activity that increasing numbers of people are carrying out in order to reduce the amount of stress that they experience in their lives. There are various different types of meditation out there, so carry out a little research into which will best suit you. When you first get started, you might want to try out guided meditation. This will simplify the process and help you to familiarise yourself with techniques and concepts.
As you can see, stress may well be a natural reaction to certain situations, but if it starts to affect your life in a negative way and interfere with your happiness, you need to take action that will reduce the consequences of stress on your overall life. It’s better to do this sooner rather than later!
Disclosure: This is a collaborative post.
As with physical ailments, medication is often an important part of treatment for mental health conditions. But chiropractic care can be an immense help to both the mental and physical aspects.