Side Effects of Stress

Stress refers to the emotional and physical strain that our body feels when put under some demanding or uncomfortable situation. Stress to a certain limit can be good as it brings out the best in us. It gets rid of the boredom that would creep into our lives if everything were always hunky dory. However, too much stress can be a cause of concern as it may become devastating for health and relationships. Everyone has different levels up to which they can handle stress. Once that limit is crossed, one can feel the harmful side effects of stress. The way people react to stress is also different. Common stress reactions include irritability, inability to think clearly and concentrate, tension and fatigue.

Physiological Changes due to Stress

Our body is not able to differentiate between stressful situations like meeting deadlines or the necessity to fight to save one's life. It prepares the body in the same way for any 'threat'. As common responses to such situations, the body undergoes certain functional adjustments like:

• Blood gets diverted from less vital to more vital organs.
• Blood pressure increases to supply blood more efficiently.
• Heart rate increases to pump more blood throughout the body.
• Rate of respiration increases to get more oxygen from the atmosphere.
• Increase in the formation of glucose from the glycogen stores in the body and from non carbohydrate stores

Side Effects of Stress

The visible changes that the body undergoes are manifested in certain immediate effects of stress, like, palpitation, breathlessness, drying of mouth, headache or backache, chest pain, hands and feet going cold with goose bumps all over the body. As blood is diverted from the digestive system to the large muscles to 'fight off' the challenge, stomach and intestines may empty their contents in order to prepare the body for quick action. This leads to a feeling of nervousness, stomach upset, vomiting and diarrhea. These side effects of stress are caused as a result of severe challenging situations that require immediate response and last for a short period of time. However, if the stress situation continues for long, then the following side effects of stress on the body can also be experienced:

Depression: One of the main side effects of stress is depression. When one is not able to cope with a demanding situation or situations, over a period of time stress starts accumulating. This may tire them out mentally as well as physically. One may start experiencing tension and anxiety symptoms which may finally lead to depression.

Weight Gain: When in stress, our calorie intake increases. We feel a natural craving for food and seek to compensate for our failure to deal with the difficult situation by overeating. What is worse is that during such times we tend to eat more junk food that are high in sugars and oils that causes weight gain.

Weak Immune System: People suffering from long periods of stress often fall ill. It is because stress weakens the cells in the body that are supposed to fight disease. This in turn weakens the immune system, leaving one vulnerable to a number of diseases and infections.

Insomnia: Our system reacts to stress by releasing hormones that prepares us to cope with the 'emergency'. Our body reacts in ways that aim to keep us alert to meet the crisis. Also, the tension of not being able to cope with a situation further makes it difficult for one to sleep. As this condition persists, lack of sleep adds to the stress over successive days. As per some studies insomnia is also shown to lead to weight gain.

Cardiovascular Effects: As the cardiac output increases, there is greater strain on the heart as it has to pump larger amounts of blood to various organs of the body. This makes one prone to a number of heart diseases. If the stress conditions continue and the body has to maintain high blood pressure for too long, this might lead one to suffer from hypertension. Depression caused due to stress often makes people lethargic. All of this coupled with the junk-food-syndrome during stress can contribute to heart diseases. This is especially true of the nervous, anxious and more pessimistic kind of individuals.

Some other negative effects of stress on body are anxiety disorders, memory disturbances, impaired decision-making, lack of concentration and shaky extremities. Long term depression due to stress can deal a severe blow to one's confidence. One important psychological side effect of stress is social isolation. Studies have also shown that stress is a common reason for addictions and substance abuse.

Stress is an inescapable fact of life. Sometimes it is good and sometimes it is harmful. What we need to realize is that we should not succumb to the side effects of stress but learn and practice simple stress management techniques. The best way to fight it off is with a positive attitude. If that does not help, one should not shy away from seeking help, be it from family, friends or a medical professional.