STRESS... part 1
We hear it all the time, we feel it, some more often than others and it has become a very accepted and familiar word. Perhaps this is why so many of us accept living with persistent levels of stress, while absorbing its daily assault on our overall health and well being.
It’s time a bright light was cast on this little word and the power it has to affect the health, well being and performance of every one of us.
Firstly… What is STRESS? According to the dictionary “a state of mental or emotional strain, reaction or tension resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances.”
Stay with me as what I’m about to say sounds crazy…. however once you think about it it does make sense…. “There is no such thing as a stressful situation. Only a stressful reaction”
The traffic isn’t stressful, your response to it is.
Your office isn’t stressful, your response to it is.
Your kids aren’t stressful, your response to their behaviour sometimes is. (Although I’m sure it’s the kids that are stressful)
“It’s fundamental. Stress is not attached to a situation but your internal response to it.”
I didn’t like this when I read it either…. and in no way am I trying to diminish the weight of the stresses, we often bear. Our responses to them are very real. But appreciating that they are actually our responses rather than an external reality is perhaps the major takeaway here - It’s true.
“Stress is not just floating around in the air. It is your body’s INTERNAL RESPONSE to a perceived threat.”
The stress response is a ‘red alert’ signal from the brain. A warning that your safety or well being may be at risk.
Whether the danger is immediate and physical like;
Running from an attacker
Avoiding a falling branch
Or emotional and abstract like;
First time turning up to a fitness class
Waiting for test results
The first priority of the stress response is to make sure your body is primed to defend itself.
“The stress response is powerful, single-minded and somewhat inflexible.”
The capacity of the stress response to change your physical state is impressive. So is the speed with which it acts.
You can go from relaxing in a chair listening to the rain, to tearing wide-eyed down the hallway before the thunder crack has even subsided.
It is powerful.
When the stress alert sounds in your brain, your body gets a clear and immediate message… “Prepare for FIGHT or FLIGHT”
That’s right. Get ready to stand your ground or run for your life.
In just moments:
Heart rate and breathing increase
Blood sugar spikes to increase available energy
You start to sweat in anticipation of needing to cool down
Digestive and reproductive systems are put on ice to save energy
Thinking shifts from logical and balanced to reactive and defensive
Blood is diverted to your muscles from your organs and extremities
Having said all that, today in 2019, our stress is very different, very rarely do we need to actually jump up and run from a bear or crocodile for those of us in Airlie Beach ;)
Today’s threats are often better described as challenges. While they are still very real, they are more emotional, abstract and persistent than those our ancestors faced. Things like worrying about losing your job, exams, morning traffic, paying the bills etc.
Back in the day, stress related to defending territory, hunting for food, running from a predator etc
“The stress response was developed to protect us from physical threats and was designed to be implemented in short, intense bursts, not for long periods of time, like we often suffer today…”
A telemarketer calling you during dinner doesn’t pose the same threat as a hungry QLD salty croc, but your body will respond to both situations in a surprisingly similar way.
With the huge range of potential challenges that surround you each day, a mind stuck in ‘red alert’ may have your body primed in stress mode on an alarmingly frequent basis. The problem is, we weren’t designed to operate this way.
Stress is not always bad. At the right level and moment, it can, in fact, be rather useful and enjoyable.
In short bursts, its performance is beautifully adapted to look after you and your well being.
Helps you respond quickly to imminent physical danger
Fuels short-term awareness and excitement
Directs and engages attention to process problems
Improves responsiveness and can focus attention
“But, your stress response is a born sprinter not a marathon runner.”
It’s when this ‘sprinter’s response’ is asked to run long, grueling distances that it can become overloaded, dysfunctional and the cause of, rather than solution to, our problems.
Stress causes real problems…. things like interrupted sleep, digestive issues, weight management issues, immunity and other internal health problems…
Stay tuned for part 2 where I will focus a little more on STRESS and it’s relationship to WEIGHT MANAGEMENT.
