Are You Under Stress?

The following article contains excerpts from both Yahoo News and Woman's Day Magazine.


When was the last time you went through a period of stress? Can you remember the way your body reacted? Chances are you didn't feel quite like yourself. Health experts say that stress can come with some pretty surprising symptoms-from forgetfulness to nausea to skin rashes. Is your body sending you an S.O.S. that you shouldn't ignore? Read on to find out if stress is taking a toll on you-and what you can do to reverse the effects.

1. Tweaked Muscles: The pain in your neck that you attributed to long hours at the computer could actually be a symptom of stress. "Stress definitely affects our musculoskeletal system, resulting in tight, contracting muscles and/or spasms in muscles," explains Elizabeth Lombardo, PhD, MS, PT, a psychologist and physical therapist in Wexford, Pennsylvania, and author of A Happy You: Your Ultimate Prescription for Happiness. "It gets us ready for fight-or-flight, although unlike our cavewomen ancestors, we don't actually need our bodies to react like this." If you're experiencing what you believe to be stress-related muscle symptoms, try this exercise: Take 5 to 10 deep breaths and focus on relaxing the tense area of your body, says Dr. Lombardo. For the neck, try gentle neck rolls or enlist your husband to give you a quick shoulder rub.

2. Eye Twitching: Have you ever had an eye twitch? The often temporary condition can be annoying and worrisome, and for some, can be triggered by stress. "This condition is known as blepharospasm," explains Debbie Mandel, MA, a stress and wellness expert and author of Addicted to Stress: A Woman's 7-Step Program to Reclaim Joy and Spontaneity in Life. "Closing your eyes and visualizing your happiest place on earth will help." Also, avoid stress-related eye issues by giving your peepers a break now and then. "If your eyes get stressed from detailed work at the computer, 'stretch' them every 20 minutes by looking out the window at a larger landscape," suggests Mandel. "If you have no view, close your eyes and imagine a panorama."

3. Ragged Cuticles: Do you have ragged, unkempt cuticles or nails? Their condition could be the result of a stress-induced nervous habit. "Nervous habits like nail biting are how we channel our stress by distracting ourselves with what is known as oral satisfaction," says Mandel, adding that picking nails and cuticles is also a common way for women to deal with feelings of stress and anxiety. If you take stress out on your hands, consider keeping a stress ball in your desk drawer-something you can squeeze or knead when on the phone with a difficult client, for instance. This helps "squeeze the stress out of your body," says Mandel.

4. Cavities: We all know that slacking off on dental hygiene is the first way to get cavities, but stress can also be a culprit, say experts, especially when you're grinding your teeth at night or during the day. Mandel explains teeth grinding, which many women do, as "chewing over the day's stressors." The problem, however, is that this bad habit can erode dental work, damaging your teeth and making them more susceptible to cavities. Mandel suggests redirecting your anxiety to pen and paper. "Set aside time to write down your problems to see them objectively in black and white, and then jot down some solutions," she says. But, she adds, "If teeth grinding is severe, see a dentist about getting a mouth guard."

5. Rashes: It sounds strange, but your skin can be a pretty good barometer of your stress level. "Stress can cause a rash, usually raised red spots or hives on the stomach, back, arms and face," notes Dr. Lombardo. "While we don't know why it occurs, some experts believe that it has to do with the adverse effects of stress on the immune system-histamine is released, causing these itchy bumps. Deep breathing may keep rashes at bay, or from developing in the first place. So, next time you feel your stress level rising, place your hand right above your belly button. "Every time you inhale, you want your hand to rise; with each exhale, it lowers. Take 5 to 10 deep breaths periodically throughout the day."

6. Nausea: Have you ever been worried about a loved one's (or your own) health condition, Googled it and suddenly felt nauseated? "Stress can upset the stomach, and nausea can be a byproduct of worry," says Mandel, who warns against playing "Google MD." Worrying about your health or a loved one's is normal, but obsessing about it is unhealthy. If your anxiety is causing nausea, try this trick that Mandel swears by: Let tepid water run over your fingers; it's believed to keep nausea at bay.

7. Sleepiness: Feeling sluggish? It could be stress. "Stress hormones cause your body to surge with adrenaline and then crash into sleepiness," says Mandel. "Stress will also ruin the quality of your sleep, so you wake up tired and irritable." What to do? Go to bed earlier, says Mandel, or catch a 30-minute nap midday, and don't feel guilty about doing so. "There is great productivity in rest," she says. "You come back more focused!"

8. Forgetfulness: Ask any woman who is trying to do it all and she'll admit to a few slip-ups in the memory department (forgotten appointments, lost keys, missing cell phone-ring a bell?). "Research shows that chronic stress can literally shrink the size of the hippocampus, which is responsible for some memories," says Dr. Lombardo. "Luckily, its size will go back to normal once your stress level reduces." Want to keep your brain functioning at an optimal level? Combat the first signs of stress with exercise, she says: "Go for a walk, run up a flight of stairs or dance around to the newest Black Eyed Peas tune." Exercise, she adds, keeps your brain sharp and may even help you be more prepared for future stressful moments.

9. Confusion: You can't decide what to make for dinner, what to wear to work or which exit to take off the freeway. Stress causes distraction and lack of focus, says Mandel. "Stress hormones lodge longest in the brain," she says. To restore focus, take a walk, she says. "Move the stress out of your body by exercising large muscle groups like the legs. You will gain clarity. Walk out in the light and you'll reset your natural rhythm while you move out the stress. Sunlight helps the body release serotonin to improve mood, and vitamin D helps you improve your immune system-a great perk."

“For some people, the little stressors we face every day are more damaging to health over the long term than the really big things, like a death in the family or a car accident,” says James Ehrlich, MD, clinical associate professor of endocrinology at the University of Colorado, Denver.

Why? “Because the sole purpose of stress hormones is to get us through life-threatening situations,” says Dr. Ehrlich. “Today, many people live in stress mode all the time, and the constant release of steroids like adrenaline and cortisol can lead directly to diseases like diabetes, heart disease, depression and cancer, and indirectly to bad health habits like undersleeping and overeating.” Rather than dismiss these “minor” stressors, decide to face them, change them and move toward calm.Here is a list of "stress buster tips" to help you achieve a happier, healthier life.

Tidal Waves

Tidal waves. They would come out of nowhere and wash over me when I least expected it, sweeping over my whole being. I couldn't describe it any other way, just waves. These waves would leave me feeling heavy and dizzy. Sometimes it was so bad I would feel detached from things around me. I thought I was going crazy. There didn't seem to be any other logical explanation. I felt alone, afraid, ashamed and helpless.

Eventually, when it got bad enough, I confided to my husband what I was experiencing. Together we sought out people to talk to and discovered I was suffering from severe anxiety. That actually surprised me. My husband and I were sitting in the doctors office when the doctor asked me if "I've been under any extra stress lately." I shrugged my shoulders, shook my head and said, "no, not really." My husband said, "Debbie!" He started listing off all the stuff that had been going on in my life in the previous couple of years. When I stopped and thought about it I said, "oh yeah."

We learn to function within our circumstances, and sometimes we manage "all too well." I had learned to deal with all the situations in my life, one after another. But really I hadn't dealt with them at all. I had survived them, but not really dealt with them.

I began to search for some tangible help. I found a book entitled "The Panic Attack Recovery Book" authored by Shirley Swede and Seymour Sheppard Jaffe, MD. I had only read a few pages when I started feeling like someone had just handed me a piece of heaven. This book helped me to realize I wasn't alone, I wasn't going crazy, and that there is help, there could be an end to this misery.

It taught me that the more attention I give to this anxiety issue, the worse it gets. When the waves would come I would get stressed out and afraid. That in itself would cause more anxiety, and because of that, the symptoms would get even worse. I began taking a different approach. When the waves would come I would simply say, "Go ahead, have fun, give it your best shot, but I refuse to watch." I would put my mind on something else and later I would realize the wave was gone and it hadn't gotten the best of me.

This book also showed me that diet and exercise are very important. It taught me about certain foods and drinks to avoid and ones to consume.

I learned that breathing correctly can make a huge difference. We are not usually aware of how we breath, but I began to pay attention to my breathing and realized I was not breathing correctly. I was taking very shallow breaths.

I set aside time every day to take a brisk walk. During that time I would focus on my breathing. I would take deep, cleansing breaths, breathing in through my nose and then forcing the air out through my lips. As I forced the air out I would visualize all my anxieties leaving my body. I also set aside about 10 minutes a day to sit quietly, by myself, and do these same breathing exercises. That helped me tremendously.

I began to realize that if I was going to be able to function properly I needed to take time for me. It is imperative to our mental health to engage ourselves in relaxing, enjoyable activities.

Being given these tools was truly a gift and as I applied each one to my situation I started on the path to wellness.

One of the biggest comforts that I learned is that many, many people suffer from some type of anxiety and I was not alone.

Wounds

When we have a headache we reach for the bottle of Tylenol. Aching muscles cause us to rub on the Ben Gay. Sick tummy? How about some Tums?

Why is it we are quick to find a remedy for our physical illnesses and discomforts, but we allow the emotional ones to go on and on, hurting everyday, and we take no action to fix them? Is it because we don't know where to turn? Perhaps we are afraid to really look at those hurts because we don't know what they will tell us? Maybe they are just simply TOO painful and by not looking it keeps the pain down to a dull roar.

If we get a cut or a wound on our body we must first clean it to make sure there is no dirt in it. Then we apply salve or healing cream of some sort. Next we bandage it and wait for it to heal. What if we got a bad wound and we didn't take those proper steps? What if we just applied a bandage on a dirty wound? If we do not take the proper steps the wound will most likely become infected. Then, at some point, we would be forced to take the bandage off, open the wound and clean it. At this point it would be more sore and dangerous to us.

For good emotional and mental health we must follow those same steps when we get wounded emotionally. If we just cover the wound up without "cleaning it out" it will most likely become infected, then somewhere down the line we have to uncover it, open it up and let out the infection. This is much more painful a process than if we had taken the proper steps to begin with.

People will sometimes say, What you don’t know can’t hurt you.” This is a very wrong statement. You can “know” things without knowing them. You can feel the pain and hurt inside of you without being able to identify what the source of it is.

The bible tells us we are made up of "mind, body and soul." We need to properly take care of all three of them to be a healthy, whole and complete person.

Dare to uncover and open those burried, painful hurts. Allow them to heal. I'll see you on the road of happiness!

Words To Live By

This post reminded me of one of my most favorite quotes. I don't know who said it. I had this written on a piece of paper and posted over my desk at work for a long time. It is a very true saying and I think of it often.

"People may not always remember what you said, or what you did, but they will always remember how you made them feel."

I grew up being ridiculed; was often publicly embarrassed and made to feel ashamed. Thinking back, I can still feel the embarrasment and shame now that I was made to feel then. As I entered into my teen years and young adulthood, I too, if I deemed necessary, used these tactics to win control over those around me, to make myself look bigger and better than others. Thank God I saw this behavior for what it really was pretty early in life and changed it. NOTHING is worth hurting another person for. Love, gentleness, kindness, patience and mercy, they are the answer. "Love covers all sins." Proverbs 10:12

Life's Road

Mostly, life goes onward
Upward, never slowing
Trecking the slopes
Scaling the mountains
Toward the sun
Ceasing to stop and wait
Compelled to keep the pace
And not be lost
I press on
Once I stopped
I looked back
Over my shoulder
There lay
Dysfunction
Confusion
Pain
Anger
My mind and heart
briefly remembered
Felt it again
Then reminded me
I am changed.

written by: Debbie Berry