What is stress?
Stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause. Every person will encounter stressors in their daily life. This Stress Awareness Month, we want to equip you with tools to overcome the external factors that may cause stress in your life. Let’s start with the symptoms of stress.
Stress can cause the following from cdc.gov:
- Feelings of fear, anger, sadness, worry, numbness, or frustration.
- Changes in appetite, energy, desires, and interests.
- Trouble concentrating and making decisions.
- Nightmares or problems sleeping.
- Physical reactions, such as headaches, body pains, stomach problems, or skin rashes.
- Worsening of chronic health problems and mental health conditions.
- Increased use of alcohol and illegal drugs
Now let’s identify stressors:
Stressors can range from work, family, and health-related issues to inclement weather or misplacing an essential item.
You can identify stressors by noting the situations in which the aforementioned symptoms arise. A useful way to do this is to maintain a journal. Be sure to record how you feel and when you begin to feel overwhelmed.
Healthy Ways to Cope with Stress:
The best way to cope with stress is to take care of your mind and body. Ways to cope with stress include:
- Prioritizing exercise
- Limiting harmful media
- Keeping up with any doctor appointments
- Eating healthy
- Drinking water
- Rest
- Finding and investing in building a community of likeminded people that you can share your concerns
For more information, please visit https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/so-stressed-out-fact-sheet
https://www.cdc.gov/mentalhealth/cope-with-stress/index.html