A neighbor curses at two teenagers trespassing on his property. A motorist guns his engine at a stoplight that won't turn green. An exhausted mother tries to feed her toddler while her newborn cries in her arms. An adolescent girl desperately tries to disguise her blemished chin as she boards the school bus...
On the surface, none of these scenarios have similarities. Both the individuals and their plights differ from one to the next. Yet something is going on in each situation - something you cannot see - that is identical. Each person is experiencing stress. Their interpretation of the events facing them - no matter how different - has created a stress response.
So what is stress exactly, and why is it different for everyone? For starters, it helps to understand how the human body is electrically wired. The nervous system is the miracle messenger service that delivers information via nerve impulses in order to generate certain physiological responses. Survival depends upon the body's internal environment remaining constant. This is called homeostasis. If a threat to that balance is perceived, the body goes into alert status with systems ready to protect against the offending enemy. Nerve impulses ignite increased nervous system activity which then increases the secretion of adrenal hormones. The "fight or flight" response is turned on. Any factor that stimulates this response is called a stressor, and the condition it produces in the body is called stress.
Okay. So we're wired for protection. It served us well in primitive times, and it's still a very good system in case we encounter a predator in our present, right? After all, our bodies need that internal balance, and this is the security check software. That's a good thing, right?
Not really. If we examine each person's situation in the introduction to this blog, we don't see one life-endangering threat. Yet their perception of what faced them triggered a stress response. All systems of protection were turned on, necessary or not. To "survive" that stubborn red light or a couple of ill-mannered teenagers, there is an increase in blood glucose and fatty acids, heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, dilation of the air passages, and a shunting of blood from the skin and digestive organs to the skeletal muscles. Increases in certain hormones further intensify and prolong these effects. Whoa, Nellie! That's a lot of body involvement for day-to-day experiences we all share. In other words, our bodies can pay a high price depending upon our reactions to everyday situations. Our perceptions of what we are facing - whether it's a death of a loved one or an encounter with a non-compliant co-worker - can generate the same physiological and physical survival response. The body is not discerning the difference and,therefore, is not in a bargaining mindset. The wiring is primitive, remember?
Exhaustion is but one of the many effects of prolonged stress. Going up the tier of more serious consequences, you'll find overweight, hypertension, elevated cholesterol - all increasing the risk of heart attack or stroke. Autoimmune diseases, such as ulcerative colitis and fibromyalgia, can also develop when the body's reserves are depleted and then intensify when stress mounts. The list of physical and psychological consequences to prolonged stress is huge. And you know what is hardest to accept, besides the illnesses themselves? The fact that we had some control over the outcome! We CAN change our perceptions of and reactions to events in our lives. That's the time when we actually have some bargaining power.
There are many effective stress management programs available if you research the subject. I have compiled a few simple suggestions that can help increase your awareness of what stressors exist in your life and how you can begin making changes. Changes now, no matter how small, improve your health by reducing the negative effects on the body.
1. TAKE INVENTORY: Set aside some time to look at your weekdays and weekends. How do you spend your time? Is there a balance between work and play? Too much of anything crammed into too small of a space results in overflow. Overflow and overload equate to overkill - "kill" being the operative word here.
2. EXAMINE YOUR LIFESTYLE HABITS: Do you exercise regularly? Do you feed and care for your body as meticulously as you shop for the perfect fashion outfit or perform maintenance on your fancy car? If not, then revisiting your priorities is in order. That chic outfit or jewel-like automobile won't look so hot encasing a dead body.
3. REWRITE YOUR REACTIONS: Do you react the same way to slow-moving traffic as you would to someone breaking into your home? Before dismissing the question, feel your heart rate and listen to your breathing the next time you become impatient behind the wheel. My guess is your body is in high gear for protection. Remember, its wiring is a little primitive. It's not discerning. YOU need to be.
Once you identify your stressors and how you react to them, start making small changes. Remember, "there is a time to let things happen and a time to make things happen" (Hugh Prather). If you don't make changes now, the change will happen to you. And it may not be what you bargained for.
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