Stress

Stress is inevitable and there no way to completely eliminate it from our lives. Even though our lives are full of challenges, some good and other bad, it would be unappealing and dull without some ups and downs. Daily life hassles such as targets that need to be made, fights and the constantly changing demands of 21st century life have made stress so ordinary that it has become a part in every day life for most people. In small doses stress appears to aid people to perform better and motivates them to exceed their expectations. However this is only healthy over short periods of time. If stress is present for too long, the positive side of stress becomes very negative and effects mind and body of the person suffering from it.

Stress is a habitual physical response to situations in our lives that somehow disturb the balance of how we are used to things. When a change in the balance is perceived, the nervous system responds by releasing adrenaline and cortisol, two stress hormones. This automated response was developed far back in our ancestors as a defense mechanism to protect them from dangers and predators. Back in the days when our ancestors were faced with dangers such as a wild animal attacking, the two stress hormones would be flooded around the body, causing an increase in blood pressure and a boost of energy to deal with the danger. In todays time these stress hormones are released by dangers such as bills that need to be paid, upcoming tests or health concerns. Often 21st century stress lasts longer than the stress that out ancestors had to deal with, and this increased time that bodies are put through stress causes people to feel fatigued, have trouble concentrating and get easily irritated.

There are a number of physical and emotional disorders that have showed links to high levels of stress such as depression, anxiety, heart attacks, strokes, hypertension, immune system disturbances that increase sensitivity to infections (The American Institute of...