When the pressure becomes too much…
“Pressure turns into stress when you feel unable to cope.” Maggie Ju from our newly-opened Richmond centre explains how stress shows itself in our minds and bodies, and suggests ways to release the pressure…
Stress is the feeling of being under too much mental, emotional or physical pressure. Pressure turns into stress when you feel unable to cope. Many of life’s demands can cause stress, particularly work, relationships and money problems, but health problems also cause stress - such as infertility or chronic pain. People have different ways of reacting to stress, so a situation that feels stressful to one person, may be motivating to someone else.
Essentially, stress causes a surge of hormones in your body. These stress hormones are released to enable you to deal with pressures or threats. Once the pressure or threat has passed, your stress hormone levels will usually return to normal; however, if you're constantly under stress, these hormones will remain in your body, leading to the symptoms of stress.
If you’re stressed, your might recognise some common symptoms from those listed below:
Emotional: You may feel easily agitated, frustrated, moody and overwhelmed. You may also feel lost control and having difficulty relaxing and calming your mind and feeling bad about yourself, or even lonely, worthless, and depressed.
Physical: You may feel a lack of energy, always tired, have headaches, upset stomach, diarrhoea, constipation and nausea, aching, pain and muscle tension, chest pain and rapid heartbeat, insomnia, loss of libido. You may have frequent colds and infections. You may also have nervousness, shaking, hearing problems, cold or sweaty hands and feet, dry mouth and difficulty swallowing, clenched jaw and grinding teeth.
Cognitive: You may have started to worry constantly, racing thoughts, poor memory and disorganisation, a lack of concentration, poor judgment and being pessimistic.
Behavioural: You may find your appetite has changed—either not eating or eating too much, avoiding taking responsibility for your health, or increased use of alcohol, drugs, or cigarettes; showing more nervous behaviours, such as biting nails, fidgeting, and pacing.
Everyone may have a little stress every now and then, which is not something to be concerned about. However, if one is constantly under stress, it becomes chronic. This can make your existing conditions worse or cause new health problems mentally or physically such as chronic pain, depression, anxiety and personality disorders, chronic fatigue, cardiovascular disease sexual dysfunction, skin problem such as acne, eczema, hair loss, IBS and so on.
Releasing the pressure
Stress is not an illness itself, but it can cause serious illness if it isn't addressed. It's important to recognise the symptoms of stress early. Recognising the signs and symptoms of stress will help you figure out ways of coping.
There is no quick fix for stress, however there are many things you can do to manage stress more effectively, such as learning how to relax, taking regular exercise, meditating.
Acupuncture is a good way to help you release stress and solve the existing health problems at the same time. More and more research evidence about acupuncture releasing stress is showing how beneficial it can be.
If you would like more information about acupuncture on stress, or to book an appointment with Maggie at our Richmond Practice Rooms visit https://www.drmaggiejuacupuncture.co.uk/.
