Is Stress Your Silent Stalker?
You’re driving down the road on your way home from work. This was not a good day. One of your major customers is talking about perhaps switching to a competitor. Your boss is angry. Everybody in the office is tense. Suddenly out of nowhere another driver veers into your path. You hit your brakes, lay on the horn, and scream obscenities you wouldn’t repeat if your kids were in the back seat. You feel your heart race and you just know that your blood pressure is off the charts.
What just happened? You are feeling the physical effects of the ramping up of external stressors in your life. You are feeling anxiety and tension. You are feeling the effects of stress hormones or the “fight or flight” chemicals being released into your system. These include the stress hormones epinephrine or adrenaline and cortisol.
Years ago these “fight or flight” chemicals kept our ancestors alive. When confronted with real physical dangers in the jungles or on the plains, these hormones acted to prepare our ancestors to do just that. By increasing heart rates and breathing rates along with elevating muscle tension, these chemicals got our bodies ready to fight or skedaddle.
Now bear in mind that a bit of stress in a person’s life is not necessarily a bad thing. A certain amount of controlled stress can be fun. Jumping out of an airplane with a parachute strapped to your back causes stress. It may be fun but it does cause stress. The same thing happens with rides at an amusement park. Include bungee jumping, mountain climbing, or cruising down the interstate on a Harley in the same category.
However, stress becomes a problem when it occurs day and day out. Some folks go through life with an almost pervasive sense of tension and anxiety due to perhaps problems at work or maybe difficulties at home. It is this type of stress that if not controlled, can cause serious health concerns such as hypertension, weakened immune system, and problems with digestion. Learning to control stress through relaxation techniques such as deep breathing exercises, visualization methods, or meditation can go a long way towards keeping stress at manageable levels.
Even getting out of bed a bit earlier in the morning and getting off by yourself to listen to peaceful music for 10 or 15 minutes will be very helpful in providing a calming effect that could get your day off to a great start. Finding time at lunch to do the same or perhaps practicing a few deep breathing techniques could significantly drop your stress levels.
Just remember that a constant level of stress in your life is not only unhealthy but will also significantly hinder your ability to function at optimal levels both physically as well as mentally. Finding natural ways to help alleviate the undue stress in your life will have a positive impact on not only you but on all those around you.
Debbie Parkinson is a free lance writer researching and writing on various topics. Debbie’s passions are health and pets. Learn more about providing shelter for your dogs by visiting her website on Large Dog Houses, Outdoor Dog Houses and the Indoor Dog House.
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