Long term stress = Long term problems

You’ve been feeling it for days, that rising tension in your body.  Your sleep is interrupted; you toss and turn
and wake up in the middle of the night unable to get back to sleep. You are feeling jittery and on edge; your patience is thin and you are just not yourself.  You are distracted and it’s hard to concentrate. You find yourself
forgetting things and feeling overwhelmed.  Those are just some of the signs that YOU recognize as signs of stress in your body. 

Within your body there are other things going on that you don’t even know about.  The stress hormone cortisol is rising causing your body to be in “fight or flight” mode. And fighting it is!! Your heart rate and blood pressure are rising making your heart work harder.  Your digestive process is changing and you might notice stomach issues that you didn’t have before.  Your glucose levels are affected. Your blood vessels are dilating. Whew!  All this because of stress.   
 
 We all know it’s important to control the stress in our lives but when you stop to think about what is happening to the body….the only body we get on this earth….it makes you take pause and think about steps you might
take to settle down that constant “fight or flight” response so that your body gets a chance to recover.

My body kicks into “fight or flight” overdrive with perceived stress.  I’m talking heart racing, binge eating, stomach gurgling, bite your head off kind of reactions when it gets to be too much.  That’s when I have to step back and find ways to get things under control again. I usually start with some music to calm my soul and get the heart notched down a beat or two combined with some deep breathing. A good yoga class with a nice shavasana ending then sets the mood for a good night’s sleep.  Getting a massage quickly rises to the top of my list as the ultimate hour of taking care of me time. 

Everybody tames the stress beast differently…..whatever you do….however you do….just do it…take care of YOU!!