4 Signs of Stress You Can’t Afford to Ignore

Stress is fast emerging as a global killer.

Studies indicate that every year, more than 100 million people die due to stress-related disorders. Stress is one of the many side-effects of leading a busy and demanding life. If not addressed timely, stress can give rise to a number of serious issues such as depression, asthma, heart ailments, Alzheimer’s disease, and obesity.

Stress enters our lives silently, and before we know, it becomes an integral part of it. Most people recognize and consider stress to be a silent killer, and yet are unable to detect it early on, as health issues due to stress do not manifest overnight. Though, there are several signs that our bodies and brains give us before falling apart like a house of cards.

Identifying these signs holds the key to nipping the problem in the bud. To help you steer clear of stress and stress-related issues, let’s look at few signs of stress.

1. Fatigue: When you are stressed, your brain goes into overdrive mode, often releasing hormones that accelerate the heart rate and breathing rate. This makes the heart pound faster, breathing gets short and heavy, and blood pressure rises. Studies show that stress can activate the part of the brain which regulates sleep, thereby, resulting in sleeping disorders. Stressed people find it difficult to concentrate on a particular problem and ponder over the same problems multiple times in their head.
2. Headaches: Stress often results in frequent episodes of chronic headache. Headaches caused due to stress are known as tension or stress headaches and can last for 30 minutes to a few hours. If you experience pain in both sides of your head regularly, you may be suffering from stress. A stressed neck and shoulders often accompany tension headaches.
3. Irritability: A stressed person’s nervous system becomes hyper-responsive. Their sensory receptors are highly sensitive to stimuli. Due to these unwanted changes, a stressed person often overreacts to even minor issues.
4. Eating Disorders: It is common for stressed people to lose their appetite in the short run. On the contrary, chronically stressed people often overeat and crave for sugary foods. The eating disorder is a direct result of cortisol, a hormone being released by the adrenal gland.

If you are experiencing these or any other signs of stress, consult a therapist or empath coach immediately. Dr. Eva A. Malanowski is against the notion that stress is a necessary evil. Trauma to Transformation, Dr. Eva’s in-house coaching program, has helped many adults from all age groups battle and defeat stress. To learn more about Dr. Eva, call her at (303) 242-7824.