Stress Happens. Here’s 5 Ways to Put it in Its Place  

Conner Graham shared that little daily stressors add up and have a huge impact on our health and wellbeing.  Today is meant to help people identify stress and reduce its negative effects.

International Stress Management Association defines stress as “The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them at work.”

It doesn’t matter your age, your location or what field you work in, everybody stresses out. When feeling overwhelmed, some of us have trouble telling us that we are feeling stressed.

Unmanaged stress has many short-term impacts.  This list includes energy loss, headaches, muscle tension, aches and pains, insomnia and loss of sexual drive.

Long-term impacts of unmanaged stress include depression, anxiety, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and more.

There’s also evidence that unmanaged stress and anxiety increases one’s vulnerability to developing an addiction. Between 6-8 percent of the general population has post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). According to the National Institute of Health, 46.4% of that population have comorbid alcohol or drug use disorder.

Identifying stressors is one thing, but dealing with them in a healthy and productive way is another. For many, turning to risky behaviors like drinking large amounts of alcohol, using drugs or having unsafe sex are escapes. Stress and addiction go hand-in-hand.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) says both men and women who report higher levels of stress tend to drink more than their counterparts.

While these behaviors might cause temporary relief, indulging them will ultimately make the symptoms of stress worse. They will probably only create more stressful situations.

If work, money, family or relationships are sources of stress, try these activities to stop stressing.

 

 

Exercise

It might seem trite to have someone tell you to sweat it out as a form of stress reduction. But there are good reasons why it is suggested to stressed-out folks so frequently. Exercising releases endorphins that feel good not only in the moment but also can increase self-esteem in the long term.

Exercise can work as either a stress reliever—taking away the edge after a long day of work—or a stress inoculator—getting the endorphins flowing early to prevent stress.

To read the entire article, click here.

0 replies    

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *