Combat the Long Term Effects of Stress

The long term effects of stress can impact your physical and psychological health, as well as your lifestyle and your social relationships. Studies suggest that chronic tension, or stressful episodes that occur regularly over a substantial period of time, can make you vulnerable to a long list of disorders, conditions, and complications. Medically, these include high blood pressure and resulting risk of heart attack or stroke. With a high stress lifestyle also comes an increased susceptibility to alcohol or drug abuse, or dangerous levels of overeating. Stress can also lead to social isolation or mistrust of friends and community members. By managing your stress today, you can take a strong step in preventing your body from developing one of these major health problems a few years down the road. Knowing the potential effects of stress can help you get motivated and stay motivated as you take steps towards a happier, healthier, low-stress lifestyle.

Stress And Your Heart
Stress can cause an explosion of hormones, including floods of cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones tell your heart to race at top speeds in order to prepare your body to deal with a crisis. Although a racing heart can be useful when fighting an enemy, running for a speedy escape from a dangerous scenario, or pushing yourself to your physical limits in sports, most of the time your heart works harder than it needs to during a stress episode. Every time you feel a sudden flood of stress or aggravation, your blood pressure temporarily goes through the roof. Many experts believe that continually occurring stress may contribute to long-term blood pressure problems, increasing the risk of a heart attack or a stroke by causing wear and tear on your heart muscle. If you can’t eradicate stress from your life, the next best thing is to engage in cardiovascular exercise for at least half an hour on at least three days a week. This will help your heart stay strong and resilient so that it will better be able to stand up to physical stress.