STRESS – OUR MODERN ENEMY
We’ve been talking and writing about anxiety and stress a lot lately. You could say that we do it because we’ve started selling Ashwagandha, which can directly affect stress and anxiety levels, but that would only be half the truth. In reality, it is because we want to spread awareness. As the saying goes, stress is a silent killer. And fast-paced modern life is the main contributor to stress, one of the main reasons for major health problems.
So, instead of saying ”its okay, it’s not that bad” we’ll look at what stress does to our bodies and why its important to deal with it as soon as possible.
WHAT IS STRESS?
Stress is a normal human reaction that happens to everyone. In fact, the human body is designed to experience stress and react to it. When you experience changes or challenges (stressors), your body produces physical and mental responses. Stress is how we react when we feel under pressure or threatened. It usually happens when we are in a situation we don’t feel we can manage or control.
Stress responses help your body adjust to new situations. Stress can be positive, keeping us alert, motivated, and ready to avoid danger. For example, if you have an important test coming up, a stress response might help your body work harder and stay awake longer. For immediate, short-term situations, stress can be beneficial to your health. It can help you cope with potentially serious situations. Your body responds to stress by releasing hormones that increase your heart and breathing rates and ready your muscles to respond.
However, not all stress is the same. There is negative stress (distress) and positive stress (eustress). Negative stress can be from illness, money problems, or family tensions. Positive stress can be from getting married, having a new child or grandchild, or getting a new job.
Chronic stress can cause a variety of symptoms and affect your overall well-being. But stress becomes a problem when stressors continue without relief or periods of relaxation. If your stress response doesn’t stop firing, and these stress levels stay elevated far longer than is necessary for survival, it can take a toll on your health.
WHAT HAPPENS TO US WHEN WE’RE OVER-STRESSED?
Stress can affect all parts of your life, including your emotions, behaviors, thinking ability, and physical health. No part of the body is immune. But, because people handle stress differently, symptoms of stress can vary. Emotional symptoms include agitation, feeling overwhelmed, and depression. At the same time, physical can range from low energy, headaches, upset stomach, aches and chest pain, insomnia, frequent colds, infections, loss of sexual desire, tension, and many more.
There are even cognitive symptoms, including the inability to focus, disorganization, forgetfulness, pessimism, and poor judgment. On top of that, stress is often accompanied by changes in appetites, procrastination, abuse of substances like alcohol and cigarettes, and various nervous behaviors.
Furthermore, ongoing, chronic stress can cause or worsen many serious health problems, including mental health problems, cardiovascular diseases, menstrual problems, sexual dysfunction, skin and hair problems, gastrointestinal problems, stomach ulcers, and much more.
Repeated acute stress and persistent chronic stress may also contribute to inflammation in the circulatory system, particularly in the coronary arteries. This pathway is thought to tie stress to a heart attack. It also appears that how a person responds to stress can affect cholesterol levels. We hope you can see why we take stress so seriously by now.
DON’T IGNORE IT. START DEALING WITH IT
The first step to controlling stress is to know the symptoms of stress. Most of us are so used to being stressed we often don’t realize we are stressed until we are at the breaking point. And recognizing stress symptoms may be harder than you think, so we think its never too soon to start looking for solutions.
Finding healthy ways to cope with stress can help limit the impact of stress on your body while potentially leading to other health benefits. One healthy way to cope with stress is to make healthy lifestyle choices like engaging in regular physical activity, following a nutritious diet, and getting enough sleep. Another way to reduce and cope with stress is to change your mindset. Start focusing on what is causing you stress and start actively finding solutions. This requires a lot of work, but we promise it will pay off in the end.
Alternatively, you could even try our Ashwagandha+. Ashwagandha is known for its anxiety and stress-lowering effect, which has been proven in clinical studies. If you’re interested in discovering more about its immense benefits, you can read it here.
Don’t ignore stress; start dealing with it.
Our sources and more info:
- https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/stress/what-is-stress/#:~:text=Stress%20is%20how%20we%20react,you%20are%20struggling%20to%20manage
- https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/11874-stress
- https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003211.htm
- https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/stress