Trish Wills
Is Stress Zapping Your Happiness?
Chronic stress is a modern epidemic
especially in these times of uncertainty
21st Century Stress Syndrome’ , ‘Burn Out’, ‘Nervous Breakdown’, ‘Stress Leave’, ‘Mental Health Day’
are all common terms that describe how chronic stress is impacting us.
What is Stress?
Stress is basically any stimulus that disrupts the body’s internal balance - Emotional Stress, Physical Stress, Chemical Stress, Structural Stress… All this stress causes a Stress Response within our body. This response is a series of Nervous and Hormonal System responses to a danger (whether real or perceived, our brain cannot tell the difference)
- Stress depletes our nutrient stores
- Stress ages us
- Stress makes us sick
- Stress stops healing
- Stress reduces fertility
- Stress makes us FAT
- Stress leads to depression, anxiety
- Stress steals our JOY!
Stage 1
Alarm Phase
The ALARM PHASE Stress Response it is Called ‘FIGHT OR FLIGHT’ – and is designed to be only SHORT TERM. Our physical body kicks into action and the:
- Heart rate speeds up.
- Blood pressure increases.
- Breathing quickens.
- Hypothalamus/Pituitary tell Adrenals to release Adrenaline
- Blood flow is diverted away from digestion and sent to the arms and legs.
- Digestion system shuts down. - (that is why can’t lose weight when stressed)
Once the danger (stress) has passed, everything is supposed to calm down and return to normal, however that is NOT happening in today’s hectic and unprecedented times.
Stage 2
Resistance Phase
If the Stressor remains, your body enters the Resistance Phase. Adrenal glands start to secrete CORTISOL to combat the stress. While beneficial for the relative short term, long term secretion of cortisol (months or years) can fatigue the adrenals and have damaging effects on the body and is very inflammatory, especially for the brain.
Effects of longer term stress are:
- Increased heart rate
- high blood pressure
- high blood sugar
- increased water retention
- cravings for carbohydrate foods (fast energy source)
- lowered immune function
- reduced reproductive system function
- poor digestion
- weight gain (storing energy)
- sleep disturbance
It’s this chronic state of high cortisol that leads to the next phase
Stage 3
Exhaustion
The Exhaustion Stage is where the Body is exhausted and stressed beyond its means and this is where you may see a Health crises or issues such as:
- Adrenal Exhaustion
- Chronic Fatigue
- Autoimmune disease
- Diabetes,
- Headaches
- Migraines
- Menstrual irregularities & Fertility issues
- Serious Digestive Disturbances
- Muscle mass loss
- Fat gain
So knowing the source of the stress and what stage you are at is the first important step towards a healthy balanced lifestyle.
From This
Road To Recovery
Proven ways to reduce stress include:
Deep breathing slowly, sends signals to our nervous system that we are calm by focusing on your breath and breathing deeply to use the full capacity of our lungs. Breathe in for the count of 4 and out for the count of 7. Extremely good when using relaxation roller bottle blend.
Drop Your Shoulders – do you notice how we seem to wear our shoulders as earrings when we are stressed.
H2O Water, Water and more water
Meditation or just sitting in a place of Joy – beach setting, nature whatever makes you smile
Exercise – not to the point of exhaustion!
Holidays – even weekend breaks with no technology
Relaxing Massages - indulge yourself
Mindset work – ensuring your thoughts are calm and positive - Affirmations like “I am safe, I am loved, I am okay!”
Earthing or Grounding – bare feet on the grass or sand
To This
Relaxation Recipe
Roller Bottle or Diffuse
- 10 drops Lavender
- 10 drops Ylang Ylang
- 10 drops Orange
- 5 drops Stress Away
- 10mL roller bottle
- Top up with carrier oil or v6
- Roll on wrists or neck when you need your stress to chill out.
Promotes feelings of confidence, relaxation & joy
Remember what I mentioned about understanding the source?
The same goes for the oils that you use in your diffuser or roller bottle. It’s important to know that not all essential oils are created equal—you can’t just go out to a retailer and trust that you’re getting the good stuff. Lucky for you, I’ve got a source I trust—Want to know more about the oils or stress and how to manage it without medication?
