When we hear the term “stress” we always associate it with health. While it is true that the stress level of the person has an impact on his/her health, the effect isn’t always negative. Stress becomes harmful if it isn’t managed properly or if a person is overwhelmed by the amount of stress he/she encounters.
When stress is not managed properly, it can cause the deterioration of health and can cause a myriad of health issues. Stress affects the major systems in the body – one can experience an increase in the heart rate, an elevation in blood pressure. If stress happens too often, it can even cause cardiac arrest and other heart ailments.
Aside from the circulatory system, chronic stress can also affect the digestive system. Some people experience diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, dryness of the mouth and throat. When a person gets irregular bowel movement, he/she has a higher chance of getting colorectal cancer, the 2nd most cause of cancer deaths in the US. Stress can also cause sleep apnea, nausea, tightness of the neck, chest and the back muscles.
People who are employed in stressful working environments also encounter change in their behaviors. Some people who don’t smoke begin to smoke as a way of de-stressing, on the other hand, smokers increase their smoking patterns. Irregular eating patterns, as well as aggressive behavior and hostility towards inanimate objects is also linked to a person who experiencing chronic stress.
Damage from stress. Stress causes damage to a person’s wellbeing. In the short term, the body is able to cope up with stress through the production of adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortiscosteriods. Unfortunately, these hormones also have adverse effects. In the short term, they cause tensed muscles, queasiness, and an increase in both the heart and breathing rates of a person. Chronic stress and continuous production of these hormones can result to allergic reactions, digestive disorders, heart disease, chronic headaches and migraine. Men experience impotence and premature ejaculation while women can have an erratic menstrual cycle.
In severe cases, stress can cause eczema, ulcerative colitis, mouth and peptic ulcers. Recurring aches and pains are also indicative of chronic stress.
How a person deals with stress is important in keeping healthy. Some people who do not have good stress management skills result to negative behavior such as overeating, drinking alcohol or taking drugs in order to cope. Needless to say, these can aggravate the health risks caused by stress. With inadequate stress management techniques, the effects of stress on the physical and mental well being of a person become irreversible.
Managing stress. The first step to managing stress is identifying the stressors and dealing with them. When you know what causes your stress, you can start creating strategies that will ease the effect of the stressor and ultimately, stop it from further affecting you. In order for this to happen, you will have to be aware of the times that you are not following your preset stress management strategy. With a stress monitor, you should be able to realize immediately that you are stressing yourself too much and you will have a signal that tells you when you should use your calming techniques.
At a time of global economic recession, stress levels are at its highest. Many have lost their jobs and those who have retained theirs are in a lot of pressure to perform well or risk losing their jobs. Through stress monitors, both the employee and his manager will be immediately informed of the need for intervention, thereby cutting down the possibility of sickness, lowered productivity and absences. Number of Stress Monitor users from Health Reviser significantly increase every day. Number of people that successfully treated their stress using Stress Sweeper goes up too.
