Stress

THE ROLE OF STRESS Stress has been shown to be either directly or indirectly involved with over 200 of the most common disorders and problems afflicting mankind today. Some of the more common problems or diseases associated with stress are: • Headaches • Infertility • Heart Disease • Chronic Pain • Autoimmune Disorders • Digestive & GI Problems • Skin Disorders • Chronic Fatigue • Anxiety & Depression • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder • Sleeping Problems • Anger and Violence • Addiction, Substance Abuse & Eating Disorders • Emotional, Physical & Sexual Abuse • Relationship Problems… and more. Life Center offers programs to treat both the physical and emotional aspects of stress. For the physical problems from stress we offer: • Gentle Chiropractic and Physical Therapy to help relax the body. • Non-Needle Electronic & Laser Meridian Acupuncture which relaxes the body. • We Teach Self-Help Relaxation Techniques, like the Stress Release Technique, which quickly de-stresses and calms the mind and body down. For those with more serious emotional issues causing stress we offer: • Psychotherapy, Social Work and Telephone Counseling. • Professional Health and Lifestyle Coaching So – What is Stress? Webster’s Dictionary defines stress as – “Bodily or mental tension resulting from factors that tends to alter an existent equilibrium (or balance)”. In biology this equilibrium or body balance is called “homeostasis”. Another way to think of stress is to think of it as anything that stimulates the body’s “fight or flight” response or our body’s defensive alarm system. I will simply refer to it as the stress response. Stressors, or things that cause stress, disrupt this balance or homeostasis. The body’s autonomic nervous system has two branches – the sympathetic branch and the parasympathetic portion. Both are in a constant state of flux in order to meet the demands of the body. The sympathetic system kicks in to protect the body from harm, while the parasympathetic calms the body down so it can rest and repair. This is also known as the relaxation response. An analogy is to compare the sympathetic nervous system to the gas pedal in a car, while the parasympathetic nervous system is the brakes. One speeds up the system while the other one slows it down. Both are needed for smooth operation of the car.

A little stress ? An example may help explain and clarify stress and the stress response: A caveman is sitting around his campfire eating. He perceives that he is in a safe environment; therefore his body reflects or mirrors this perception of no danger or stress. He is relaxed and enjoying his meal. The parasympathetic nervous system is activated to help him relax and digest his food. While calm and relaxed - his heart and breathing rate is slow, lots of blood is flowing to the stomach to help digest the meal; his skin and muscles are relaxed and free of perspiration; his blood chemistry would show calming levels of sugars and fats, etc. Suddenly, he sees the shadow of a growling bear near the entrance to his cave. Automatically, as soon as the perception of a threat or a stressful situation exists, his sympathetic nervous system kicks in, causing the body to switch into a defensive, alarm mode to either fight the bear or run to safety. This is called the “fight or flight response” or simply the stress response. The Stress Response As soon as the sympathetic nervous system perceives a threat it initiates the 'fight or flight response to change the body’s physiology for battle. This includes: 1. Releasing stress hormones such as Cortisol. 2. Heart and breathing rate increases to supply the needed blood and oxygen to fight. 3. Blood is shunted to the brain and vital muscles. 4. Perspiration increases to help cool the body down as it prepares to fight. 5. Chemicals are released to help with inflammation and blood clotting. 6. Sugars and fats pour into the blood to help release extra energy needed to fight. The “fight or flight” or stress response is critical for the caveman’s survival. It allows him to mobilize the resources needed for action and using his muscles to move his body away from the threat. The key point is that the stress response is designed to move our body out of danger. In today’s modern life, we no longer have to run away from bears. Most of our today’s stress is more of a mental and emotional nature. We worry about money, bills, work, our family, etc., all which creates stress and initiates the stress response. But we no longer channel that stress by moving our body out of harms way like our ancestors had to. Without physical movement the stress hormones remain in the system to cause problems. This explains why exercise and movement is so important when we are under stress. This system is always running in the background; keeping the body or system “on edge,” ready to respond to any emergency, life-threatening situation or a perceived problem. And that is the real problem with chronic or long-term stress, it slowly wears down the body. Acute or Chronic Stress Stressors can also be defined as short-term (acute) or long-term (chronic). Acute Stress Acute stress is the reaction to an immediate threat, the fight or flight response. The threat can be any situation that is truly experienced, or even subconsciously or falsely imagined. The body doesn’t know the difference between a real or imagined event – the stress response is the same. Common acute stressors include: • noise, • crowding, • isolation, • hunger, • danger, • infection, and • imagining a threat or remembering a dangerous event. Under most circumstances, once the acute threat has passed, the response becomes inactivated and levels of stress hormones return to normal, a condition called the relaxation response. Chronic Stress Frequently, however, modern life poses on-going stressful situations that are not short-lived and the urge to act (to fight or to flee) must be suppressed. Stress, then, becomes chronic. Common chronic stressors include: • on-going highly pressured work, • long-term relationship problems, • loneliness, and • persistent financial worries. Why is This a Problem? Repeated stress often causes an exaggerated sympathetic nervous system response, which can cause tense muscles, restricted breathing, excess perspiration, nervousness, queasy stomach, impaired immunity, etc. In turn, it leads to negative emotions like anxiety and fear. Occasional short-term stress is usually not a problem. The real problem is when the stress becomes more frequent and long-term. It’s like keeping your foot on the gas pedal when your car is in park. The engine revs but has nowhere to go. The key then is to either avoid stressful situations or change our perception of what is going on around us.

How To Handle Stress There are various stress management techniques that are helpful in avoiding stress or reducing the impact of stress on our body and life. Exercise to Reduce Stress As explained above, the Stress Response is designed primarily to get the body to physically fight or flee from danger. This means to move the body. Therefore, exercise is one of the key things to do when under stress. The Stress Response releases stress hormones and lots of sugar into the blood stream for quick energy. These hormones, sugar and energy must be used fairly quickly or else they can begin to damage the body. Therefore, once the stressful situation is under control it is helpful to do some exercising. Go for a walk, jog, swim, dance, jump up and down, etc. Do anything to move the body even for only a minute or two. Just Move! Burn up those excess hormones and extra energy. Stress Management At Life Center we offer various ways to address the physical and emotional aspects of stress. At Life Center we offer: • Chiropractic and Physical Therapy to help relax the mind & body. • Professional Counseling to help address the underlying emotional issues causing stress. • Various Self-Help Techniques to help minimize stress when in a stressful situation. Our favorite Self-Help technique is want we call the Stress Release Technique or SRT. We developed this technique while working with patients who were in recovery for substance abuse or over-eating and needed a way to manage their daily cravings and anxiety. We researched various techniques and combined the best-of-the-best to formulate the Stress Release Technique for our clients to quickly eliminate their cravings and anxiety when they occurred. SRT is based on the quality work of Doc Childre who developed HeartMath, Emotion Freedom Technique by Gary Craig, psychologist Roger Callahan, the developer of Thought Field Therapy, and the wonderful affects of Laughter Yoga. All of these approaches are a blending of what we now know about human psychology and how the mind and body works with the principles of acupuncture and energy medicine. Go to the Stress Release Page to get more detailed information on this wonderful Self-Help technique.