Our bodies are fearfully and wonderfully created to deal with stressful situations. What our bodies were NOT created for is to live in a fight or flight response on a daily basis. This type of stress over time causes wear and tear externally and internally. This non-stop stress will have your stress hormones pumping non-stop as well. If that happens, those high levels of stress hormones can result in your health being compromised. If you don’t learn to minimize, eliminate, or manage stress in your life, you could develop any of the following chronic problems (and this is only a partial list!):
Adrenal fatigue
Allergies
Anxiety
Autoimmune diseases
Cancer
Chronic fatigue
Decreased libido
Depression
Diabetes
Dizziness
Fibromyalgia
Gastrointestinal disorders
Headaches
Heart attack
Hostility
Hypertension
Immune system lowered
Irritability
Memory impairment
Muscle tension
Pain
Panic disorders
Skin conditions
Sleep disorders
Stroke
Weight gain
Physician and New York Times best-selling author Daniel Amen addresses chronic stress in his book, Change Your Brain, Change Your Body. He writes that chronic stress harms the brain: “Chronic stress constricts blood flow to the brain, which lowers overall brain function and prematurely ages the brain.” This is due to the effects of excessive amounts of the stress hormone cortisol, which has negative consequences for both cognitive function and emotional balance.
Take time today to be intentional about managing the stress in your life. Take care of yourself.
Your life depends on it!
Desi
The Attitude Adjuster