None of us are bigger than stress, I know I'm not - its all part of the emotional ups and downs of life.
Our stress can come from many places, the environment, our bodies, the people around us, our own thoughts, and even how we view the world too.
My stress today was in the form of school drop off, groceries, medical appointment, getting on top of the work emails , dinner prep, cleaning the home and those dreaded lunchboxes!!! (who else is so under motivated for making school lunch boxes?!?!).
Stress is very natural; we are built to deal with stress and react to it. If you’ve heard of the term ‘fight or flight’ then you already know this. If this term is new to you, then here’s a quick explanation - when our bodies feel under pressure, our nervous systems releases stress hormones (one of those is called cortisol). These hormones give us the ability to cope with a threat or danger.
But I'm not in danger you say... well think again. For a small child, the threat or danger could be something as simple as flashing lights or loud noises (or being hassled by grandma for that parting hug). For an adult, perhaps a crying baby or the red light you almost drove through (whilst racing to the office).
What ever your stress triggers may be, stress can be positive and helps us stay alert, motivated and focused on the task at hand (or surviving those grandma hugs in some cases).
But what about constant stress? Late nights, work or school deadlines, illness or even cruddy food choices? In simple terms – being in a continuous state of ‘fight or flight’ - well it causes serious wear and tear on our bodies.
Constant stress wreaks havoc on our immune and endocrine systems, plus more.
When in constant stress our bodies are making excess cortisol which creates inflammation. Been wondering why your body is all over achy or digestion is out of whack – it could be inflammation from stress. Struggle with brain fog? yeah, add that to the list too - its on mine.
Personally, stress effects my emotional well-being above all else.
Its normal to feel highs and lows of our daily lives, but when we are constantly stressed, we become tired, moody and irritable. Difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep then starts the vicious cycle of negative health. We then reach for poor food choices to fuel the energy.
I am learning the art of managing my stress before it manages me.
It’s all about keeping it in check.
I have a few tools for caring for my emotional health and naturally boosting my energy that work for me.
What are your tools? Do you need to get some? Just a thought…
Have an awesome day. Natasha
ps: if you're ready to hear about my stress busting tools I mentioned above; comment below, email me, find me on social media... whatever you want... let's get these tools in your life too!
Copyright Natasha Loohuys 2023
