What is stress and how do I know if I am suffering from it?
Stress is that familiar uncomfortable tension in the body when life starts to feel a bit heavy on our shoulders when there is too much on our plate. It is the body’s response to life’s challenges that affects how we act, behave, and think. This mental and physical tension acts as a signal to tap into our strengths and coping strategies to navigate through tough situations.
When we talk about stress at thymia, we’re talking about how tense or wound up you feel. When stress levels are low, you may feel relaxed and have a sense of tranquillity. When stress levels are high, it’s a sign that it might be time to take a breather.
Believe it or not, stress is not all bad; it equips our body to conquer short-term challenges. When stress becomes long-term, that’s when it starts to wear us down, mentally and physically. Prolonged stress can make us more prone to sickness, mess with our digestion and toy with our moods and appetite (Russell & Lightman, 2019).
Causes
We all deal with stress differently. Our ability to handle stress can depend on a number of factors including personality, social and economic conditions and yes, even our genetics! Stress commonly sneaks in when we’re juggling too much, leaving us feeling overwhelmed and like there’s just never enough time to do everything we want or need to.
Signs of long-term stress include:
Feeling anxious, tense, or irritable.
Physical symptoms including stomach and digestive problems, muscle pain, headaches and dizziness.
Changes in sleep or eating habits.
Autoimmune condition flare-ups (including, for instance, Crohn’s Disease).
Skin condition flare-ups or reactions (including acne, psoriasis, eczema and more).
Leaning more on unhealthy habits like drinking or smoking which we might feel provide temporary relief.
Trouble focusing, making decisions or remembering things.
If you have been feeling stress for a long time, or feel that your stress is affecting your mental or physical health, do not hesitate to seek support from friends, family or a medical professional.
How can I reduce stress?
To reduce stress, it is essential to first recognise when you are feeling stressed. By doing so, you are taking the first step towards reducing it. Reducing stress requires increasing your resilience to it and finding the strategies that work best for you. It is important to note that there are all different kinds of barriers that cause stress, things that we can and can not control. Some stressors that may not be in our control can include health concerns, financial worries, difficult relationships or a stressful work environment; these are all things that can make stress more challenging to deal with (learn more). To discover which strategies work best for you, complete daily thymia wellness checks and use our Journey feature to track your progress, allowing you to see how your chosen approaches impact your wellbeing over time.
Here are some of the best ways to build resilience to stress:
Identify stress triggers: Take notice of what triggers your stress and look out for the warning signs. Recognising these triggers empowers you to better prepare for stress and more quickly recover from stressful episodes. Naming your stressors can also lessen their internal impact, making them feel more manageable (NHS UK, 2022).
Take a break: Stepping back, even briefly, can provide new insights and calm your mind (Mind, 2021).
Get active: Taking a short walk or trying gentle sitting exercises can work wonders.
To learn about getting active, click here for our full guide.
Relaxation techniques: If you are someone who benefits from mindfulness, try a breathing, relaxation or body scan meditation exercise.
Eat wisely: Stressful times call for extra attention to how you are eating - consider healthier eating habits to bolster your immune system and stabilise blood sugar. Take note if perhaps stress may be negatively affecting your eating habits (Mental Health Foundation, 2022).
Time management: Organise your tasks, set priorities, and use problem-solving tools to feel more in control.
Reframe negative thoughts: Identify negative thoughts and address if there is any merit to them or if it’s just your stress-talking.
Don’t avoid your to-do list! We all sometimes avoid challenging tasks or difficult conversations to reduce feelings of stress, but it can actually cause more intense stress and poorer mental health in the long run (Moos et al., 2005). To tackle procrastination, make a list of everything you have been avoiding over a week and notice if there are any patterns in the tasks you tend to avoid (Every Mind Matters, 2022).
Final note:
Spending some time to find what helps you control your own levels of stress will help you in the long run. Employing appropriate strategies for stress has been linked to greater psychological wellbeing (e.g., Dijkstra & Homan, 2016) and although not all sources of stress may be in our control, knowing the techniques that help you feel less stressed is a great support to lean on. An essential part of using these techniques effectively is to track your progress. That's where thymia's daily wellness checks come into play, helping you identify which strategies are hitting the mark for you.