5 Signs that Your Stress Level May Be (Slowly) Killing You

Modern society is a complex landscape filled with distractions and other stress triggers that may be slowly killing you. Everyone experiences stress at some point in their lives, and some people are better at managing it than others. A little stress can be useful, but excessive stress can cause serious mental and physical health issues that should be addressed immediately. There are several easy things you can do to relieve your stress, and the ones mentioned below will give you a good starting place in recognizing and eliminating your stress.

The Signs of Stress

1. Depression and Anxiety

If you suddenly find yourself depressed or anxious, sometimes for no apparent reason, there’s a good chance that there’s something stressing you out, whether you’re aware of what exactly that is or not. When you’re depressed, the world will seem less exciting, and you’ll find it hard to motivate yourself. Anxiety has the same paralyzing effect on your daily drive. Depression and anxiety combined can cause you to be unproductive, or make impulsive decisions that are not beneficial to you in the long run. 

2. Dietary Issues

Stressful situations can cause sudden changes in your diet. These dietary changes can lead to unnatural fluctuations in your weight and can cascade into other factors of your health. For example, you might start eating foods high in sugar and fats, and those typically lead to acne, increased weight, and eventually depression as you begin to see the physical effects of your diet. On the other hand, some people may lose their appetite, which causes issues in the opposite direction. 

3. Heart Issues

When we’re stressed, sometimes the first physical indicator is an increased or erratic heartbeat. In the short term, this could lead to chest pains, trouble breathing, and a loss of energy. In the long term, abnormal heart rates can lead to heart disease, cardiac arrest or heart muscle degradation. 

4. Bad Behavior

At healthy levels, stress helps us to take action and complete tasks that are needing to be done. It can sometimes be a motivating factor in the right situations. But poorly managed stress tends to backfire and cause us to make riskier decisions outside of being productive. Someone who is under high stress could choose to remedy it with excessive drug or alcohol consumption. This is a slippery slope that could lead to all sorts of complications. These complications can affect both your interpersonal and professional life.

5. Irregular Sleep

A sure sign of stress is either the inability to sleep or the tendency to sleep too much. If you find yourself having a string of restless nights, you may also notice an increase in irritability, fatigue, and a decrease in focus and memory. Over time, this will cause an overall degradation in all facets of life. Conversely, too much sleep can cause tardiness, grogginess, and again, an overall degradation of your physical and mental health. 

So what we can we do to relieve and prevent stress?

Mindfulness Breathing

One of the best situational activities you can do when stressed is mindfulness breathing. This is a form of meditation that helps you relax and focus. It involves sitting in a comfortable position in an area with minimal distractions and focusing on your breathing. There’s an abundance of apps and tutorials on the internet that can help you get started. 

A good time to use mindfulness breathing is when you notice an irregular heart rate, or if you are having trouble sleeping. With restlessness, the cause is usually overcrowding of thoughts in your mind. Mindfulness breathing is a way to minimize your thoughts, easing you into relaxation.

Talk to Someone

Sometimes stress relief is just a matter of talking it out with someone. That someone could be a therapist, a good friend or family member, or a coworker. Venting your frustrations is not only a good way to organize your thoughts, but it could also allow for a support system to develop. As soon as someone sees that you’re struggling, they are usually pretty willing to help in any way they can. 

Experience Nature

Many studies today have proven the effectiveness of not only taking walks but doing so out in nature. Being surrounding by green space can rejuvenate you, and walking, in general, is a great way to organize your thoughts and creatively solve lingering problems. Immersing yourself in nature will help you disconnect from all the distractions of modern society.