It pains me to say it, but almost all disease shares one common root: STRESS. Yes, you have most likely heard that before. And if you are anything like me, hearing that stress causes your illness makes you EVEN MORE STRESSED. That is because it is a wicked cycle, and one that is difficult to step away from. So, what is a modern human to do when the world is on fire, our lives are busier than ever and stress is served up with our morning cup of coffee?
Our sweet bodies, trying to do the best they can to navigate this insane world we have tossed them into, are plunging us into a never ending stress response. And they are right to do so. There are real threats happening to many people and, if you live in a marginalized community, this is even more apparent now. However, our bodies also trigger threat responses to seemingly benign inputs (complicated by past trauma and experiences) such as speaking up for ourselves, imagining worst case scenarios, being late to a meeting and more.
The accumulation of stress responses in our bodies (whether they are due to something truly dangerous or our own worries and imagination) is called the allostatic load. Two doctors introduced this concept in 1993: neuroendicrinologist Bruce McEwen and psychological psychologist Eliot Stellar. They found that modern day humans suffered from a chronic stress response, meaning they never found a relaxed state following the cascade of stress hormones and physiological responses. Allostatic load can also refer to situations in which our stress responses never completely shut off.
No matter how you slice it, allostatic load causes harm to the body and is the root cause of many modern diseases we experience as humans. Stress, when unresolved or constant, creates an inflammatory response that can cause some biggies, like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, mental health illnesses and even PTSD. You are probably familiar with the fight, flight, freeze, fawn and flop responses (or "F" responses), which are all signs that our nervous system is out of balance and we are perceiving a threat. They are also signs that our body has released stress hormones like cortisol and catecholamines to deal with the situation.
And now we arrive at the helpful part. You see, we have a lot more control over our stress responses than we think we do. That being said, it takes, first, a certain level of self awareness to notice when you are in a stress response. The desire to dissociate (aka doom scroll, binge watch a show, shove emotions away or eat that whole bag of cookies) is a pretty good clue. So is being too tired to get out of bed (freeze and flop), avoidant of social interactions and work (flight) and irritable (fight), just to name a few. Everyone is different and we all have our vices. Find yours and you will find your response to threats, whether they are real or perceived.
Here are some tips I use myself to help become aware of and manage stress responses:
I know life is hard right now and we are under a remarkable amount of stress. But taking the time to care for your own body and being aware of your stress response is one of the best things you can do for your health. It decreases inflammation and risk of disease, improves mood and quality of life and makes it easier to make healthy choices on the regular. Best of all? Your body wants to relax and release, so the minute you start practicing better stress management, it will get on board.
Have some tips of your own? Comment below! And if you need help, you know where to find me >>> rosecampbellhealthcoach.com