How constant stress can harm your body

Imagine this: You are stuck in terrible traffic, running late for a very important meeting and all you can do is watch the time pass away. In the meanwhile, a small control centre in your brain i.e. the hypothalamus decides to give out the order: release the stress hormones! These are the very hormones which activate your body’s inbuilt ‘fight or flight’ response. What happens as a result? Your heart beats faster, your breath starts racing and your muscles are prepared for taking action. Now this response was created to protect your body in a state of emergency by helping your body to react quickly. But if this mechanism is triggered day in and day out, then it could put your health and well-being at major risk.

Stress is a normal physical and mental response to life’s experiences. Everyone experiences stress every now and then. And the reason could be anything: from everyday tasks and errands to working and taking care of family; from serious life events such as a diagnosis of a disease to the death of a loved one – any incident can trigger stress. 

For immediate, short term conditions, stress can be beneficial to you and your health. This type of stress can help you manage the potentially difficult situations. As stated before, your body reacts to stress by releasing hormones that raise your heart rate and frequency of breathing while readying your body’s muscles to move and take action.

However, if your body’s stress response does not stop getting activated, and if these stress levels stay high for longer periods of time than it is necessary for your survival, it can take a huge toll on your health. Persistent stress can cause a range of symptoms and affect your overall physical and mental well-being. Some symptoms of going through chronic stress include irritability, nervousness and anxiety, depressed mood, headaches as well the inability to sleep well.

Following are some of the ways in which chronic stress harms your body systems:

The Central Nervous System is responsible for activating the ‘fight or flight’ response in your body, when you are faced with a potentially dangerous situation. When the apparent fear is gone, the hypothalamus would ideally tell your body’s systems to go back to normal functioning. Now, if the central nervous system does not go get back to a normal level of functioning or in case the stressor foes not disappear, your body’s fight or flight response will continue, causing harm to your whole system.

Chronic tension and strain also influences occurrence of behaviours such as overeating or not eating nearly enough, alcohol or drug abuse, and withdrawal from social situations.

Respiratory and cardiovascular systems also get affected by the release of stress hormones. Throughout the body’s stress response, you breathe in quicker to quickly dispense oxygen-rich blood throughout your body. If you already have a breathing issue like asthma or emphysema, stress can make it even more difficult to breathe.

When you’re under stress, your heart also beats faster. Stress hormones cause your blood vessels to tighten and send more oxygen to your muscles, so you will have additional strength to take action. But this also increases your blood pressure.

Consequently, recurrent or chronic stress will make your heart work too much, for too long. When your blood pressure increases, so do the risks for suffering a stroke or heart attack.

The surge of hormones, quick breathing, and amplified heart rate can also cause distress to your digestive system. You’re more likely to have heart-burn or acid reflux due to an increase in stomach acid. As it is often believed, stress does not cause ulcers, but bacteria called H. Pylori often does. But stress can increase your risk of getting ulcers and may cause previously existent ulcers to act up.

Stress can also affect the manner in which food moves through your system, leading to a spectrum of problems ranging from diarrhoea to constipation. As a result of chronic stress, you may also go through nausea, vomiting, or a stomach ache.

When you are stressed, your muscular system tenses up to protect itself from damage. It tends to release itself again once you relax, but if you are continually under stress, your muscles may not relax. Constricted muscles can cause headaches, back and shoulder pain as well as body aches. Over time, this can trigger an unhealthy cycle as you may reduce or stop exercising and take medication for relief from this kind of stress-induced body aches and pains.

Prolonged stress can be very harmful for your well-being and its is recommended that you take all the needed precautions to  safeguard yourself against it. If you do feel that you are going through continual stress, it is most likely a good idea to talk to someone, preferably a healthcare professional like a doctor or therapist.