Overview
All of us will have dealt with or suffered from stress at some point in our lives, it’s our bodies normal reaction to finding ourselves in a situation where we feel pressured or under threat. It often happens when we find ourselves in a position where we feel that we no longer have control or when we are having to deal with a life changing situation or something particularly challenging.
Low levels of stress can actually be helpful in the short term, as it can help us to push past our initial fear or pain in certain situations, as well as helping us to focus on the things that we want to achieve. This is because when we feel stressed our body causes a fight or flight response, caused by the body producing adrenaline to help us respond quickly when we find ourselves in a position that we need to escape.
If we start to feel overwhelmed with high levels of stress or stress that continues for long periods of time, it can begin to have a serious impact on our daily lives and our ability to function. Suffering with stress can leave you feeling like you are uninterested in life and unable to enjoy yourself. It can make you feel as though you can’t relax as your mind is racing and you can’t switch off. Sometimes you can feel worried or stressed and be overwhelmed with feelings of dread. We don’t all deal with stress in the same way and whilst stress isn’t classed as a mental health condition it can have a negative effect on both our mental and physical health
There are two different types of stress that you may hear medical professional refer to these are:
Acute stress
A form of stress that happens quickly and can last for a few weeks but feels intense. It usually occurs as a result of experiencing a sudden and unexpected event like being the victim of an assault or accident or having suffered a bereavement.
Chronic stress
Lasts for a much longer period of time and can keep recurring and tends to affect people who are under constant pressure. It could be that they have a high pressure working environment or are a long-term carer for a family member with chronic health conditions.
Causes
There are a many reasons that can cause people to suffer from stress and these can vary from one person to another. It can be caused by one big thing or event or a build-up of lots of small things over a period of time. Some of the more common causes can include:
- A history of trauma including childhood trauma
- Money worries or concerns like a large amount of debt or fear that you can’t pay your bills or mortgage
- Overwhelming responsibilities that you feel you can’t cope with
- Life changing events like bereavement, divorce or moving home
- Infertility, pregnancy or having a child
- If you are having to deal with abuse, hate, or discrimination
- Health concerns either your own or those of a family member or partner
- Feeling like you have no support or are alone
- Getting married or divorced, having relationship issues or personal problems
- Finding yourself in a situation that you have no control over
- Taking school or college exams
- Career changes like losing a job, being unemployed long-term or facing retirement
Stress can affect not only our behaviours and emotions but it can cause physical symptoms as well. Symptoms can vary amongst individuals, as well as in intensity and length and can include:
Physical symptoms
- Feeling dizzy or lightheaded
- Nausea or vomiting
- Sudden weight loss or gain
- Nail biting, skin picking or teeth grinding or jaw clenching
- Sore eyes or blurred vision
- Skin issues such as rashes or hives
- Palpitations, rapid heartbeat, shallow breathing, hyperventilating or difficulty breathing, high blood pressure
- Tightness in the chest, chest pain or sweating
- Headaches, fatigue, sleep issues, general muscle aches and pains
- Stomach such as diarrhoea, constipation or indigestion
- Changes to the menstrual cycle
- Symptoms of already existing medical conditions getting worse
Psychological symptoms
- Anxiety, panic attacks, depression
- Feeling moody, irritable, restless, sad or angry
- Lacking motivation or focus or feeling overwhelmed
- Low self-confidence
- Memory problems, difficulty concentrating or making decisions
Behavioural changes
- Withdrawing socially
- Changes to your sex drive
- Relying more on alcohol, tobacco or non-prescriptive drugs
- Over spending or shopping
- Crying more often
- Eating more or losing your appetite, being less active
and exercising less
Ways to help reduce your stress levels
There are a variety of ways and different techniques you can try to help manage or reduce your stress levels.
- Recognising your triggers
Different things will cause different people to trigger their stress and recognising what your trigger is will help you to better understand and manage your stress levels. You can do this by doing things as simple as taking regular exercise, maintaining a healthy balanced diet and cutting down on caffeine, tobacco and alcohol. Daily exercise causes the body to produce stress relieving hormones that can improve your mental and physical well-being. When you eat healthy food it helps to stabilise your mood by reducing stress triggers.
- Self-Care
Try to confide in a family member or friend about how you are feeling so that you have support when you need it. Make time to relax or spend time doing hobbies that you like and may have neglected. Practice mindfulness or some relaxation techniques to help manage your symptoms. You can try a variety of things like yoga, meditation or breathing exercises or treat yourself to relaxation hypnotherapy or a form of massage, whatever works best for you. Spend more time in nature and green places, taking care of your garden or plants, walking in the country or spending time with animals will all help to reduce your stress levels.
- Make changes
Learn how to manage your time so that you don’t put yourself under any unnecessary pressure. Take time for regular breaks to relax and unwind and give yourself time to just breath. Prioritise things so that you can focus on what is really important and not worry about things that can wait. Learn how to say no to things you don’t need or want to do so that it won’t put you under added pressure or stress. Try breaking big tasks down into smaller components so that they don’t seem as overwhelming or impossible.
Most of all learn to be kind to yourself and acknowledge your qualities and achievements, be grateful for all the positive things in your life and remind yourself of these every day.
When to seek professional help
If you find that you are struggling to manage your stress levels or it is having a serious affect on your ability to function on a day to day basis, then you should initially consult your doctor.
They can prescribe you with medication to help with anxiety or depression or any physical symptoms that you may have developed. They can also refer you for therapy which can help you to work through your stress with the help of talking therapies such as counselling, psychotherapy and CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy). CBT focuses on your thought patterns and behaviours, and it can help you to not only recognise your stress triggers, but how to find healthier and more positive responses to them. Written by Jan, Jeana and Wendy at Barnsley Hypnosis and Counselling (UK). For more free information click above link.
