Is stress
bad for your health?
 |
| credit: http://www.manager.co.th |
Most of
people think stress is extremely bad for their health. We can see from many websites,
journals and books which tell us that “stress causes many health problems” and
suggest us “how to relieve stress”. Is it actually true? First, let’s understand
the word “stress”
What’s
stress?
Stress is one
of the body’s reactions to anxious, excited or oppressive situations. It is caused by falling into
dangerous situations or your life’s problems such as problems about family, work,
finance, relationship, love etc. When you feel stressed by something, your body
will release Adrenaline (emergency hormone) and Cortisal (stress hormone) into
the bloodstream. These chemicals give you more energy and strength. It can be good
if this stress is caused by dangerous situations because you can use energy and
strength for your fight or flight. In contrast, it can be bad, if your
stress is from your emotion or your life’s problems and there is no exit for
this extra energy and strength. What will happen?
The terrible effects of stress
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| credit: http://health.kapook.com |
Stress can cause
many health problems
On your body:
headaches, high blood pressure, heart problems, diabetes, asthma, sleep
problems
On your mood:
anxiety, lack of focus, anger, depression
On your behavior:
drug or alcohol abuse, lack of social contact
Based on the
above, it seems that stress from your emotion or your life’s problems is
actually bad for your health but…
The
effects of stress are caused by stress?
I think we
can control our body reaction by our mind, thinking and brain. The brain is part
of the nervous system. It controls production of hormones and releases
chemicals associated with different emotional states. Thus, if you change your
mind about stress, maybe you can change your body's response to stress.
“Now
the researchers estimated that over the eight years they were tracking deaths,
182,000 Americans died prematurely, not from stress, but from the belief
that stress is bad for you.” Said, Kelly McGonigal (health psychologist)
In addition,
I’ve just told you that when your feel stressed your brain will produce Adrenaline
and Cortisal. It also produces oxytocin (cuddle hormone) which has many
benefits for your body. It helps your blood vessels stay relaxed during stress,
protects your cardiovascular system and helps heart cells heal from any damage
from stress.
Therefore, we
shouldn’t worry so much about effects of stress. We should take the benefits of
stress (energy and strength) as a good source of power to create new things or
do your work best, don’t you think.
Ted Talks:
How to make stress your friend by Kelly McGonigal
Reference:
Stress:
Mind:
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