Chronic Stress

We have to reiterate that it is when stress becomes permanent or persistent that it is termed as chronic stress, or distress.
Two situations are typically at the core of the situation where one's stress ends up becoming permanent or persistent:

1. Where one is consistently exposed to situations that are stress-inducing

2. Where one develops a tendency to be stressed by even the most insignificant events (so that things that would not ordinarily be termed as stressors end up turning into the same).

Stress, as it turns out, is not just a psychological thing. It also has physiological (physical) implications, and these will turn out to be very important in our discussion on the effects of chronic stress later.

In order to understand the said physiology of stress, you need to appreciate the fact that when one is stressed, they tend to release what are referred to as 'fight or flight' hormones. It is an evolutionary adaption (perhaps a wrong one in this day and age, but nonetheless one that we still have). It happens in all situations that are threatening - even where the threat is not physical. It could be in a situation where we are faced with an emotional threat, or other mental threat, which has absolutely no physical bearings. But the end result is always the same: we end up putting the fight or flight mechanism into action, through the said hormones (which include the likes of cortisol and adrenaline).

Now several things tend to happen when the fight or flight hormones are coursing through our bodies. We tend to experience significant changes in things like blood pressure, heartbeat rate, blood sugar levels, mental arousal and pretty much everything that would help us flee or fight from the perceived threat. Of course, these changes are supposed to last for only a few moments, until we respond to the threat, before they dissipate and we return to our normal state of balance (because they actually constitute an 'out of balance' state).

Clearly, problems are bound to arise if this threatened and highly aroused state turns out to be our 'default state.' When that happens, it would mean that our blood pressure would be persistently spiked - with bad consequences on our blood vessels. It would mean that our heartbeat rate is persistently heightened, with bad consequences on the organ. It would mean that our blood sugar levels are persistently imbalanced, with bad consequences on among other things, our liver and kidneys. It would mean that our minds would be in a persistent state of arousal, with bad consequences on our mental performance.

In the final analysis, we could have a situation where chronic stress leads us into chronic illnesses both of the physical type (like hypertension, type 2 diabetes, kidney failure, liver failure and so on)and of the mental type such as chronic depression.
It therefore becomes imperative to bring chronic stress under control.

We have to start the discussion on how to control stress that becomes chronic with an appreciation of the fact that in this day and age, most of the threats we encounter are of an emotional rather than physical variety. We no longer have (physical, animal) predators prowling behind us, wanting to make us their supper. Of course, the reaction in the situation when we are crossing a road and an approaching car seems headed to crush us would invoke a reaction similar to when a predator is fast catching up with us. But it is very rarely that we encounter such situations. More often, we find that the situations causing chronic stress in modern people are situations that have to do with persistent exposure to emotional stressors, which our minds perceive as too threatening - leading to what is incontestably a rather inappropriate 'fight or flight' response.

But there are several things you can do, to bring chronic stress under control.
- The whole process has to start with a diagnosis as to whether you are, in fact, suffering from chronic stress. But take note that stress has a tendency to dupe us. You don't have to be explicitly mentally 'stressed' (overwhelmed) to be in a condition of chronic stress. Sometimes, and very often in fact, stress tends to manifest in very unexpected ways (like through chronic headaches, chronic fatigue, memory and concentration lapses%u2026 and similar things).

- The next step is the identification of stressors (events that trigger the stress reaction). The stressor can be something as mundane as the prospect of meeting a certain person - say a boss that you have to meet on a day to day basis, the prospect of seating an exam, the prospect of meeting people (in cases of social anxiety illness) and so on.

- The third step is the acceptance of the fact that it is not the stressor events that are causing stress in us (which accumulates into the harmful chronic stress), but rather our perception of them.

- The fourth and ultimate step is that of changing our perceptions in face of various stressor-events identified, so that we no longer perceive them as threats, and so that we no longer end up initiating our fight or flight mechanisms in the face of them. This is a challenging step. It involves changing our long-standing mental habits. But it is the ultimate key to overcoming chronic stress. A stress management coach can help in this process of changing mental habits.