My story: How stress affected my body
In 2020 I was feeling acute chronic stress. I had a stressful job while training to be a therapist. Before, the adrenaline of deadlines had got me through each day. Now chronic stress was my new normal, affecting my mental and physical well-being.
How stress affected my body
Somehow, pressure had always spurred me on. However, stress now felt long-lasting and de-motivating. One deadline would be finished and another one would pop up. To-dos would spring forth and I’d never be able to complete them all. It was like a game of whac-a-mole that I could never win.
The stress response
What I didn’t know at the time was that my body was flooded with stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol). Each morning, as I opened up my laptop my blood pumped faster, with my heart racing. Even though it wasn’t a life-or-death situation, each deadline made me go into a ‘fight or flight’ response.
Because my body didn’t have time to relax, it became disrupted. I was stressed which led to the blood flowing towards my digestive, reproductive and immune systems. What I’ve learnt now is that stress can lead to bloating, digestive pain and irregular periods. The immune system is also suppressed meaning it is harder to recover from illnesses.
4 types of stress
Not every type of stress is harmful though. There are four types of stress, including:
- Acute stress: Short-term stress which is positive or distressing.
- Chronic stress: Long-term stress which can be caused by difficult situations or trauma.
- Episodic acute stress: Acute stress that seems to be a way of life, creating ongoing distress.
- Eustress: Exciting stress that is positive, often caused by challenges (increasing adrenaline).
Mental and Physical health issues
Chronic stress left me anxious and burnt out. Chronic stress can also lead to depression, muscle tension, heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure, memory and concentration issues, stroke and sleep issues.
Each night I had racing thoughts and found it hard to switch off. I was hyper-vigilant about making mistakes, which made me check sentences multiple times.
Although chronic stress can lead to behavioural issues such as over-drinking/ eating, smoking etc, luckily I didn’t have any of these. Instead, I had stomach issues and negative thought patterns such as “things will never get better.” I felt stuck in my situation, with no one to blame but myself.
Healthy ways to cope with stress
Even though it was three years ago, I remember how stress negatively affected my mind and body. I still shudder at the thought of feeling trapped in my own anxious body. What worked for me is the following:
Delete the stressor: While reframing the stressor may work for some, for me, I needed to take drastic action and quit a stressful job. Problem-focused coping asks one to remove the stressor from one’s life completely (which I did).
Pause: It sounds obvious but when you’re in a fight or flight response, take a pause and a deep breath to try to shake off the momentary stress.
Positive self-talk: I use affirmations and positive self-talk to encourage myself (rather than telling myself I haven’t done enough).
Change states: Getting into my body by moving, stretching, walking etc. helps me to get outside of my head and into my body.
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