Stress: Modern Day Existence

72% of Australians report significant levels of stress in their lives, such that their physical health and mental health are compromised. Undue stress levels is attributed to several phenomena influenced by the  high demands of today that is driven by family and time constraints; workplace performance, competition and perfectionism.
It is well established that insidious and chronic elevated levels of stress hormone impacts negatively on the body and the mind leading to ill health symptoms expressed as depression, fatigue, obesity and other chronic diseases like: heart disease, vascular disease and cancer.

Sources of stress

Stress can arise from various sources such as physical, psychological, emotional, social, environmental etc. A stressful event can either be a happy one (wedding, birth, travel, etc.) or be an upsetting one (getting fired, going through a divorce, the loss of a loved one, etc). The stimulus can be both minor or very significant, temporary or chronic. Considering that we are all individuals and our learnt behaviour teaches us to manage stressful events in individual ways; it is best to identify what your stress triggers are and work towards reducing such stressors. 

Signs of stress

When faced with stressful situations, the human body reacts by releasing various hormones, including Cortisol and Adrenaline. In its initial phase, stress can cause symptoms such as palpitations, lump in the throat, anxiety, distress, etc. These symptoms are usually short term.
But after a long period of time, uncontrolled stress can be harmful to one’s well-being and health; symptoms can then be of a physical, emotional, psychological or behavioural nature.
Here are a few examples:

• sleep disorders
• muscular pain and tension, headaches
• digestive symptoms disorders
• irritability, agitation
• depression, anxiety
• increased social isolation
• relationship problems
• loss of self-esteem
• weight gain and appetite irregularities
• lower performance and low motivation
• work absenteeism

Obviously living with any form of stress has negative effects on the human body. However, when it is properly managed stress can also benefit and it is a natural occurrence in human life . Indeed, it can be useful to increase one’s concentration, it contributes to creativity, increases productivity and helps develop new skills.
But for that to occur, you must learn to control it and better manage it.

At 2B Positive Health Group we are offering alternative
options for stress relief.

Consider booking a series of introductory sessions in the Light Therapy Room for stress management.