Stress isn’t just ‘that annoying feeling’ you get when things don’t go your way or you feel your life is not turning out the way you planned. It is quite possibly the single biggest threat to your physical health and mental wellbeing. But, many people believe it is simply an unavoidable by-product of modern life or an unavoidable part of being successful.
Certainly, our bodies are only designed to handle stress in small doses However, long-term, chronic stress has been shown to be a major cause of mental illness and death. On the other hand, knowing the symptoms of stress can help you catch it sooner and develop personal ways to combat stress.
How Stress Impacts our Lives
The consequences of stress are experienced in every aspect of our lives, including emotions, behaviors, cognitive ability, and physical health. Consequently, almost no part of the body is not affected by it.
Even worse, the symptoms of stress are varied and often vague, while individuals can experience results very specific to themselves. However, here’s a checklist of the most common symptoms you can check to see whether you’re suffering from stress.
Emotional Symptoms of Stress
- Becoming easily agitated, frustrated, and moody
- Feeling overwhelmed, experiencing a feeling of loss of control
- Finding it impossible to relax
- Developing low self-esteem, lack of self-worth and general feelings of negativity
Physical Symptoms of Stress
- Low energy
- Headaches
- Upset stomach, including diarrhea, constipation, and nausea
- Aches, pains, and tense muscles
- Chest pain and rapid heartbeat
- Insomnia
- Susceptibility to colds and infections
- Loss of sexual desire and/or ability
- Nervousness and shaking, tinnitus, clamminess
- Dry mouth and difficulty swallowing
- Clenched jaw and grinding teeth
Cognitive Symptoms of Stress
- Constant worrying
- Racing thoughts
- Forgetfulness and disorganization
- Inability to focus
- Poor judgment
- Being pessimistic or seeing only the negative side
Behavioral Symptoms of Stress
- Changes in appetite — either not eating or eating too much
- Procrastinating and avoiding responsibilities
- Increased use of alcohol, drugs, or cigarettes
- Exhibiting more nervous behaviors, such as nail biting, fidgeting, and pacing
What Happens when I Suffer from Long-Term Stress?
Chronic stress, however, can cause or exacerbate many serious health problems, including:
- Mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, and personality disorders
- Cardiovascular disease, including heart disease, high blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythms, heart attacks, and stroke
- Obesity and other eating disorders
- Menstrual problems
- Sexual dysfunction, such as impotence and premature ejaculation in men and loss of sexual desire in both men and women
- Skin and hair problems, such as acne, psoriasis, and eczema, and permanent hair loss
- Gastrointestinal problems, such as GERD, gastritis, ulcerative colitis, and irritable colon
Using Deep-Relaxation and Meditation to Combat Stress
Most importantly, the best way to combat stress is to manage it before you start developing any serious symptoms. For instance, some people will glibly tell you to simply change your lifestyle and cut out the things that cause stress, but that is a luxury many of us simply cannot afford. Moreover, it is often our careers and family responsibilities that cause the most stress, and these can’t simply be cut out.
To sum it up, what you need is a relaxation routine, one that triggers the body’s natural relaxation response in order to start combating the effects of stress. Conversely, the problem with many relaxation techniques is that they end up adding to your stress levels, however unwittingly.
The need to be at a certain destination at a certain time, deal with strangers or prepare and study in advance makes many traditional relaxation techniques less effective.
Synctuition offers a scientifically proven, personalized way to achieve a deeply relaxed state, improve the quality of sleep and rest and generally combat and lower stress levels, all done at a time and place that suits you.
Therefore, the positive emotions that listening to Synctuition audio creates will improve your sleep, significantly reduce stress levels and train your brain to achieve relaxation increasingly easily.
More about Synctuition
Meditation and relaxation are usually expensive – Synctuition is like a spa, without leaving your home. Just close your eyes and your imagination becomes a reality.
