Physical Effects of Stress
We Can Identify the Problem Timely
A number of physical effects of stress can help us to identify and timely address the problem. Making a correct diagnosis is key to overcome stress.
Watch out for the symptoms of stress – once you have identified how your body physically reacts to stress you can put in action a strategy of how to deal with stress
Physical Effects of Stress Summary
Known Illnesses
It is believed that more than 50% of all visits to doctors are initially caused by stress.
Many health care professionals consider stress as one of the fundamental reasons for illnesses such as cancer and heart attack.
Others have already proved that humans under stress are more vulnerable and not resistant to trivial diseases such as simple flu.
Numerous couples all around the world and especially Europe and USA are struggling in having their own babies because of stress.
More than 60% of all men on this planet suffer the pains of inflamed hemorrhoids the main reasons for which are the work under pressure and the inability of meeting numerous tight deadlines.
Beware! Stress can be Slow
Stress may accumulate slowly so it may be difficult to notice it and if not relieved it may seriously affect your overall health.
For instance usual daily routines such as driving might turn out to be constant sources of stress, which slowly and persistently affect our physical and emotional state.
Thus stress accumulates day by day and the physical effects of stress may show up unnoticed by you.
Physical Effects of Stress on the Internal Systems
The American Psychological Association have summarized the most common physical effects of stress on the internal systems of human's body.
Nervous System
When stress physically or psychologically the body suddenly shifts its energy resources to fighting off the perceived threat. In what is known as fight or flight response, the sympathetic nervous system signals the adrenal glands to release adrenaline and cortisol.
These hormones make the heart beat faster, raise blood pressure, change the digestive process and boost glucose levels in the bloodstream. Once the crisis passes the systems usually return to normal
Musculoskeletal System
Under stress muscles tense up. The contraction of muscles for extended periods can trigger tension headaches, migraines and various musculoskeletal conditions.
Respiratory System
Stress can make you breathe harder and cause rapid breathing, which can bring on panic attacks in some people.
Cardiovascular System
Acute stress – stress that is momentary, such as being stuck in the traffic – cause an increase in heart rate and stronger contractions of the heart muscle. Blood vessels that direct blood to the large muscles and to the heart dilate, increasing the amount of blood pumped to these parts of the body. Repeated episodes of stress can cause inflammation in the coronary arteries, thought to lead to heart attack.
Highbloodpressureinfo.org is an interesting site where you can find more details about the effects of stress on your blood pressure.
Endocrine System
Adrenal glands
When the body is stressed the brain sends signals from the hypothalamus, causing the adrenal complex to produce cortisiol and the adrenal modulla to produce epinerphine – sometimes called “stress hormones”
Liver
When cortisol and epinerphine are released, the liver produces more glucose, a blood sugar that would give you the necessary energy to fight or flight in an emergency.
Gastrointestinal System
Esophagus
Stress may prompt you to eat more or much less than you usually do. If you eat more or different foods or increase your use of tobacco or alcohol you may experience heartburn or acid reflux.
Stomach
Your stomach may react with “butterflies” or even nausea or pain. You can vomit if the stress is severe enough.
Bowels
Stress can affect digestion and which nutrients your intestines absorb. It can also affect how quickly the food moves through your body. You may find that you have diarrhea or constipation.
Reproductive System
In men excess levels of cortisol, produced under stress, can affect the normal functioning of the reproductive system. Chronic stress can impair testosterone and sperm production and cause impotence.
In women stress cause absent or irregular menstrual cycles or more painful periods. It can also reduce sexual desire.
SOURCE: American Psychological Association
Immune system
The immune system is the internal system which is designed to protect us from any external bodies (viruses or bacteria). It costs a lot to the body meaning that it has very high energy usage.
Under stress your body needs energy to run or fight! This is why it changes its chemistry to suppress the immune system. This is why we usually get ill before or after exams or big challenges at work. Check some more details regarding the impact stress has on your immune sytem.
Other Physical Effects of Stress
Let’s now have a look at some of the most frequent physical effects of stress:
- Aggression
This is an emotional state of anger towards you, another person or sometimes towards the whole world. Usually you can assess this state as wrong but you can not stop it. It is stronger than you and keeps manifesting day after day.
Go back to top - Apathy
This is a feeling that you don’t care about anything and you don’t want to do anything. The apathetic person is not interested in the events around or in the future and can not do anything to protect themselves in case of a danger.
Go back to top - Guilt
This is a feeling which comes when we have already done or want to do something which we classify as wrong. Often the thought which results in guilt might be unconscious such as: “If I was more careful I would be so rude to Jim this morning”.
Go back to top - Numbness
Sometimes as a result of stress you can not feel anything in a particular part of your body – legs, arms… They just do not obey to your orders.
Go back to top - Headaches
Headaches might be caused by different reasons, one of them being chronic overwork and stress. In addition tensions and deep disappointments can also result in stress and terrible headaches. Find out more about stress headaches and how to deal with them.
Go back to top - Hot and Cold Waves
This is a feeling of hot or cold in turns irrelevant of what the temperature of the air is. First you feel hot and immediately afterwards cold.
Go back to top - Depression
Depression is a state in which you are sad and feel that you can not enjoy anything because your situation is so difficult and unpleasant. Present and future look so dark and obscure resulting in suspicions and fears suppressing the pleasure from the usual simple things.
Go back to top - Diarrhea
The state of guts is painful and often causes diarrhea as a result of stress. The guts can not be controlled and this happens with no obvious reason.
Go back to top - Sweating
Pumping sweat for no reason even if it is cold. The sweating is not caused by extensive physical work. It starts from palms and armpits and can show up on face and the whole body.
Go back to top - Tingle
You have a slight stinging feeling in the arms, fingers, legs or toes. Sometimes the feeling is like you have thousands of needles stuck in your legs…
Go back to top - Nightmares
Those are the bad dreams you often have. Some people dream exactly the same dream many times, which might result in states of chronic fears and depression.
Go back to top - Bad mood
Bad mood and lack of mood at all are the slighter forms of apathy and depression. They are not so unpleasant and usually manifest as unwillingness to talk and share or indifference towards any undertakings of the team.
Go back to top - Tension
This is the feeling coming with the strong will to do something even if it is not so clear what exactly. It comes because you are ready to do something but at this very moment you either can not or do not have the resources needed.
Go back to top - Inability to focus
This feeling is similar to forgetting facts for short period of time. You know that something has just gone through your mind but can not recollect it. It is there but you can not use it immediately… Or you listen to somebody and until he finishes his sentence you have already forgotten the beginning.
Go back to top - Low self esteem
This is the feeling that you are good for nothing and can not do anything of true value. All others look better to you and more skillful to do their job.
Go back to top - A sense of vomiting
You constantly want to vomit and often do not want to eat. Sometimes you just have the feeling that you will vomit straight away.
Go back to top - Irritability
You are easily annoyed and feel irritated by everything and by everybody. You think that everything you are told is wrong and think how come the person in front of you is so blind to not see it?!
Go back to top - Disappointment
It is the state of feeling rather sad because something has not happened or something is not as good as you hoped. Disappointment comes also when you have been denied something you want or need. It may come when you just feel helpless to do anything.
Go back to top - Loneliness
This is the unhappiness because you do not have any friends or do not have anyone to talk to. It is the feeling that you are isolated by your relatives, friends and colleagues. Often you feel that nobody cares about or understands your problems and worries.
Go back to top - Speeded heartbeat
You feel that your heart will break. With no reason your heart just beats so fast and hard that you feel something will happen to it. It is not necessary to have a particular threat.
Go back to top - Being worried
You keep thinking about problems of yours or about problems that might happen; you feel scared with no specific or direct threat. When you are worried you are also anxious, tensed, irascible; you can not focus, feel unhappy, can not sleep or have nightmares.
Go back to top - Tiredness
If you feel tired, you want to rest or sleep. Tiredness is natural consequence of long working hours or conflicts and is one of the most common physical effects of stress. If tiredness becomes chronic it is a sure signal that our body can not restore effectively from stress.
Go back to top - Other
Other usual physical effects of stress are aches and pains allover the body. Starting with backache, neck ache, stiff neck, muscle ache and ending with tight shoulders, chest pain, upset stomach, constipation the result is always the same – total discomfort and inability to focus even after persistent attempts for relaxation. The lack of focus dooms to failure any task we initiate.
Most of those are normal reactions of ours to changes in the surrounding environment. They become indicative physical effects of stress if they manifest persistently in the course of time and we can not restore completely to our normal physical condition.
Actions Against the Physical Effects of Stress
It is all about you!
The fight against the physical effects of stress starts from realizing the real problem. And the real problem is that stress exhausts your body on a daily basis. This means that urgent counter actions on your behalf are necessary - on a daily basis as well.
Have a look at the 5 SIMPLE STEPS STRESS MANAGING STRATEGY which helps you blend in your daily round the effective actions which will reduce stress levels and will make the physical effects of stress disappear.
The good news is that more and more employers realize that productivity of their employees is closely related to the levels of stress they experience on a daily basis. Thus they start to be more and more interested in the ways to reduce stress levels at the work place and in this way limit as much as possible any physical effects of stress.
For instance some American companies report reduced paid leave after the implementation of stress relief areas in the company where employees can rest in calm for a couple of minutes during the day.
Adding gyms and other leisure activity areas or just organizing stress management seminars can also contribute to the overall reduction of stress levels experienced by employees.
What Are Your Personal Reactions to Stress?
Found a strange human reaction to stress? Share your unique observations to others who are also trying to identify when they are under stress.
What other visitors have said
Click below to see what other visitors have already shared ...
I Become A Motor Mouth
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I seem to get really hyper and tend to run off at the mouth. Sometimes the things I say make absolutely no sense. When my wife got sick and was admitted ...
A Ball Of Tension
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I am really not sure if this is exactly what I am currently thinking it is but I decided just to share. I live in a big city with quite tough traffic and ...
I Just Feel Cold and Yawn
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The main sources of my stress are traveling and insufficient sleep. Until recently I was 100% traveler which means that I was exposed to a constant change....
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5 SIMPLE STEPS MANAGING STRESS STRATEGY
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