Taking the stress out of stress management
In 2022, The American Institute of Stress reported that roughly “33 percent of people report feeling extreme stress, 77 percent of people experience stress that affects their physical health and 73 percent of people have stress that impacts their mental health. These numbers are staggering and important for us to be mindful of as April is Stress Awareness Month. This is a great opportunity to spreading the word and priority healthy stress management practices!
Stress is a normal part of our adult lives. Worry, fear, anger, sadness and other emotions are all normal emotional responses. Not every situation can be met with crystalline, level-headed clarity. How we regain our personal sense of peace and regroup in a healthy way, however, is vital to being able to prolong our wellness into the future. This goes beyond the normal understanding of coping mechanisms, and more into how we preempt stressors through regular, mindful wellness practices.
When we disengage with the warning signs of stress, we are putting ourselves at risk of burnout and fatigue. These symptoms of stress are much harder to come back from and can sometimes alter our opinions about our life choices permanently, leading to us making brash decisions. Once burnout takes hold, it is not always immediately obvious what needs to be done in order to find solutions to our challenges.
Warning Signs
The warning signs of stress are not always immediately apparent because they often manifest much later. One bad day may go unnoticed. Two can be seen as a “tough start to the week”. Once we are on day three or four of feeling not ourselves… it’s time to take action.
Irritability is a dominant symptom of stress, and can often be the most evident. When nothing seems to be going right and there is a constant negative perception surrounding all of our interactions, stress may be taking hold in a way that requires action.
Fatigue is also an inhibitor of progress and a sign of stress. When we don’t get enough sleep due to ruminating thoughts, or worse, when we feel we are sleeping too much but never feeling alert; stress could be the culprit.
Why Prevention is Important
Stress can affect our health in ways that are serious and lasting. Our nervous system is challenged when asked to distinguish between emotional and physical threats. If we experience the discomfort of an argument with a friend, a work deadline, or a mountain of bills, our bodies can react just as strongly as if we were facing a true life-or-death situation. The more our emergency stress system is activated, the easier it becomes to trigger, making it harder to shut off and regain our sense of calm.
Allowing our bodies to exist in a heightened state of stress most of the time can lead to serious health problems. Chronic stress disrupts nearly every system in our bodies. It can suppress our immune system, upset our digestive systems, increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, and speed up the aging process. It can even rewire the brain, leaving us more vulnerable to emotional issues.
What To Do
Stress management looks different on everyone. psychologist Dr. Trevor Davis encourages anyone on a mental health journey to try and try again when it comes to stress management techniques. He notes that “it’ll take multiple starts to find the right fit and the right habit sequence. Keep trying, and pay attention to the specific things that work or don’t work.” Documenting the challenges and successes will help with not repeating the same efforts and appearing to consistently fail.
Some people like meditation and some like exercise. Some like being around people and some like taking some time for themselves. No matter what method we use to deal with stress, the important part is a distraction. By engaging in distance between ourselves and the stressors we are facing, we are able to see things from a different vantage point and come up with solutions from a place of clarity instead of survival.
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