Stress and Its Effect on Your Health
April is National Stress Awareness Month. This will be the first of three posts that address stress, its effect on your health and how to combat it without turning to food. No matter how positive and upbeat a person may be, stress is unfortunately an undeniable aspect of life. While there are different kinds of stress and different levels of this emotion, it is important to understand how much is a normal amount, and when to know when stress can cause other negative effects not only on your mind, but on your body.
Some stress is fleeting and manageable, while other types of stress can be dangerous and have a negative impact on your body. There are 3 types of stress: acute stress, eustress and distress.
Acute stress will come on suddenly and can be severe such as with an unexpected deadline at work. While this can be nerve-wracking, the feeling will not last long and can be dealt with without any long-term effects.
Eustress is the feeling of stress such as with planning a wedding; it is usually short-term and actually releases good hormones, such as dopamine, which creates a happy feeling. While you may feel under a lot of pressure, it is for something positive and exciting.
Distress is the type of stress that needs to be minimized and avoided as much as possible due to its potential to create unhealthy side effects. Distress can be long-term and is created when an individual cannot cope, causing adverse effects such as depression, anxiety, fatigue, headaches, sleep problems, and over or under-eating.
There are many ways to handle stress so that the negative symptoms that come along with it can be prevented. Staying physically active is one of the most powerful ways to control stress by releasing endorphins which can improve your mood and help you to relax. Meditation is another great option, as setting time aside to reflect, think, and calm down will allow your body and mind to rest. Writing in a journal, organizing and prioritizing are other ways to control and manage stress.
While stress is a natural part of life, there are many ways to prevent its negative effects on your mind and body. Check back for tomorrow’s blog post on 10 Ways to Combat Stress to learn several ways to fight the negative effects of stress!
Your turn to take action: What are the main sources of stress in your life and how does it affect you?
Bonnie, I never heard of “eustress.” Thanks for teaching me something new.
Got up this morning to go to dance class (to get my exercise) but there are 6 inches of snow on the ground. So, while I’m not feeling distress this morning, I did go ahead with some gentle stretching, journal writing and a brief guided meditation – all of which are listed in your post above. Seems like I’m on the right track (or should I say heading in the right direction?).
Thanks again.
~Debra
You are on the right track, Debra, that’s awesome. So glad to connect with you again. By the way, 6 inches of snow?? Where are you again? We have gorgeous 72 degree weather here!
When I am stressing, or forgetting that everything is as it should be, one of my favorite things to say to myself is: “In this moment there is nothing for me to do. There is only something for me to be and something for me to remember….to know that right now, I have everything that I need.”
See Rachel’s latest blog post: The 16 Habits of Highly Unsuccessful People
That’s great Rachel! Love it. Some deep breaths while saying these things will probably help to! Thanks for your comment.
I do not have a lot of stress and I am glad. I was stressed by my health but once I started my journey to a healthy lifestyle and had a few surgeries that stress went away. But, when I do feel stress coming on I go for a walk, it really helps.
Kirsten, I’m glad to hear your journey to a healthy lifestyle is paying off for you. Going for a walk and clearing ones head is a great way to deal with stress…and doing it when you feel the stress first coming on, like you said, is terrific. Good luck on your journey.