Stress & Anxiety Management

There’s no getting rid of stress, but you can learn to live healthier with it

Some stress is normal, and we adapt to it. We manage it. But many of us remain at the “alarm” stage too long, causing an imbalance in the stress response – particularly the stress hormone, cortisol. We feel “tired but wired,” which also interrupts sleep. If left untreated, it will lead to the adrenal burn out, cortisol will become depleted, and we feel exhausted or wiped out.

Signs of Stress:

• Do you get distracted easily or have a hard time remembering things?
• Are you having trouble falling or staying asleep?
• Is your hair falling out?
• Are you feeling more run down, getting frequent headaches, have trouble getting going?
• Are you wired and tired?
• Do you have increased anxiety?
• Do you experience sugar cravings?
• Is your waist > 35 inches or do you have a “muffin top”?

These and many others are signs of increased stress. If this sounds like you, your body is telling you that something in your life needs to change. But what exactly is the problem? Stress raises blood sugar, blood pressure, and causes inflammation. Those are all good things if we are fighting or running for a short period of time. But most of us are under chronic stress, which can cause serious health problems.

Rather than our bodies responding to a danger, or stressor, and then returning to its baseline, prolonged stress contributes to an increased risk of many chronic conditions, including cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease.