This post about stress awareness is sponsored by Stress Health
6 Things you Didn’t Know about Stress
Stress is such an innocuous word for all the trouble it can cause. Did you know that stress can cause serious medical issues like cancer, obsessive compulsive disorder and clinical depression?
Sure, that seems like common sense. But there is a whole world of things to know about stress. Here are six things you didn’t know.
- Beneficial and Not So Beneficial Types of Stress
Did you ever think you’d come across a type a stress that’s good for you? This magical, helpful stress is called eustress. You need that kind of stress to have a healthier, more fulfilling and exciting life.
Have you ever been on one of those amusement park rides that slowly carries you up, up, up a gigantic tower?
You know that ride that pauses for a breathless second at the tippy top and then drops you back down to earth?
Well, eustress develops when you do things like that. Or when you go sky diving, play laser tag and even when you fall in love.
Other types of stress are tolerable stress (such as changing jobs) and toxic stress – the latter referring to stress that is so severe and long-lasting that your stress response is constantly flooding your body with stress hormones, even when there appears to be no threat on the horizon.
The things about stress is that it doesn’t just affect adults, it can affect your whole family. Most little kids aren’t built to deal with stress yet they live in a world where stress is all around them!
It’s really important to learn the signs of toxic stress in kids, and how to help them cope!
Worried about your kids? Make sure to learn how stress affects kids, too!
- You Can Stop Your Stress Reaction Right Now
When it’s time to fight or flee, your body produces the necessary biochemical reactions to get you in top physical shape.
If you remain in that state and don’t calm yourself down right away, the stress could have an adverse effect on your health.
In order to train yourself back down from that flight-or-flee high, you can practice stress relief techniques like meditation or mindfulness techniques.
Once you’ve mastered how to stop your stress reactions for yourself, make sure to pass those stress health tips onto your kids.
If you think that dealing with stress as an adult is hard, imagine how it feels to be a kid with a brain that’s still developing.
- Chronic Stress Can Affect Your Health
Large amounts of stress can cause serious issues, as previously mentioned. Smaller amounts and shorter periods of stress, likewise, can wear down your immune system.
The likelihood of developing an illness is greater when you are under stress, even if the stresses are relatively small.
If you have been expose to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) such as abuse, neglect or parental divorce, your brain and body may overreact whether the stress is life-threatening or a simple annoyance that upsets you.
I could throw a bajillion numbers at you about how much stress affects our health, but I won’t bore you with that.
Just trust me, I learned first hand when I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia just how much stress can tear through your body. That’s why I’m so passionate about sharing my favorite self care tips with you guys!
Did you know that stress can even affect kids’ health? Check out this short video!
- You Can Prevent a Significant Amount of Stress in Your Life from Occurring
This one is pretty easy, so without mincing words, here are some ways you can prevent high levels of stress:
- Healthy diet
- Close, meaningful friendships
- Regular exercise
- Relaxation and meditation
- Positive outlook
- Fun activities
- Professional help, as necessary
- Not Everyone Experiences Stress in the Same Way
We are all unique, born with different qualities and personalities. Two people may experience the same thing, but perceive it in different ways.
What stresses one person out doesn’t necessarily stress out someone else.
The stressor might be the same, but the external event isn’t what causes stress—the reaction to the stressor is.
You can change how you react to stressors by practicing different stress management techniques, such as mediation.
[click_to_tweet tweet=”Worry doesn’t take away the stress of tomorrow, it takes away the happiness of today! #selfcare #inspirational #quotes #quirkyinspiredlife” quote=”Worry doesn’t take away the stress of tomorrow, it takes away the happiness of today”]
This was probably the biggest lesson that I’ve learned. EVERYONE reacts to stress differently.
Some people become scared and worried when they are stressed out.
Others become frustrated and aggressive. Others become frustrated and aggressive. Stress has so many different faces, and when children experience stress, it can look different from the adult version!
For me, stress looks like worry. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve been a worrier. When stuff gets really hard, I try to remember one of my favorite stress quotes about worry.
- By Imagining Your Stress Gone, It Can Be
And finally, banishing the stress! Such tricks as guided imagery and visualizations actually help you think away your stress. Here are some other ways to imagine away your stress:
- Positive self-talks
- Journaling
- Art or other creative outlets
- Group talks with friends
- Meditation
Try a couple or all of those techniques to see which one better helps you banish your stress.
Make sure to check out all the amazing Stress Awareness resources over at Stress Health. Take the ACEs quiz and see how your family ranks on toxic stress!
Michelle Pegram says
It’s crazy the impact stress can have on our lives. I’ve definitely wondered if stress has made some of my health issues worse. I really like meditating to help relieve stress and, while I never thought I’d say this, exercise really seems to help, too.
Ash Sears says
Meditating and exercise are AWESOME ways to deal with toxic stress! Those are two of my top ways to cope with stress too!
Kristi says
A great post for this time of year with the holidays and all the extra family time. Drives my stress level way up!
Ash Sears says
Stress can definitely sneak up on you! Make sure to take care of you, Kristi!
Kerrie Mendoza says
Such important things to consider when it comes to your children’s health. Checking in and teaching kids to cope with stress is so important.
Ash Sears says
It’s so easy to overlook that kiddos get stressed out too! Glad you found these tips helpful, Kerrie!
Myrah Duque says
I agree. A healthy diet and exercising help. It keeps your mind occupied, especially this time of year with all the family gatherings.
Ash Sears says
Sometimes keeping the mind occupied instead of ruminating on things can DEFINITeLY help!
Andrew says
Stress is never fun. I’ve observed a lot of it in my lifetime. I always find that people who micromanage their emotions are often way more stressed than people who have learned to ‘let things go’. Unfortunately, these days, people are being taught to focus on emotions and micromanage them, creating more stress, not less — in my opinion anyway…
Ash Sears says
Overthinking things can definitely lead to stress….>Raises hand as an overthinker<<< There's a happy balance between letting things go and overanalyzing every feeling we have! Thanks for the comment, Andrew.
Connie says
I find this very intriguing. A lot of good information. Thanks for sharing.
Ash Sears says
Glad you could find these stress tips useful, Connie!