Stress is the trash of modern life, we all generate it but if you don’t dispose of it properly, it will pile up and overtake your life – Danzae Pace
Stress is a common problem that is faced by many people. Stress if not managed can lead to disruption of almost all your body processes which will put you at increased risk of numerous problems that include:
- Headache/migraine
- Anxiety
- Fatigue
- Sleep problems
- Irritability or anger
Prolonged stress can lead to major health problems, here are some of the physical and mental effects of stress.
Effects due to physical stress
In general, physical stress is visible to human eyes and reaction is also very fast to this type of stress. Some conditions what we face due to this stress are tiredness, illness, headache, irritation, cold, stomach upset, etc. These effects can be reduced and treated by taking medication for some time. If ignored and left untreated it may lead to some other health problems.
Effects due to mental stress
Living with mental stress is nothing less to programmed death. So it is very important to avoid mental stress at early stages itself.
- Shrinks the brain – Grey matter of brain plays an important role in making us mentally strong. But a person with mental stress is known to have reduced Grey matter, which effects psychological stability of mind. Adults or children effected with this stress behave violently. In some individuals, stress can even lead to a condition known as Alzheimer (forgetfulness) and reduces life span leading to early death.
- Health problems – Overweight, asthma, high blood pressure, improper development of fetus brain during pregnancy, are some of the health problems faced due to mental stress. In extreme cases, if blood pressure is not regulated, then it can have symptoms of heart attack. Because of stress, some people have more food than what they have regularly, this makes them overweight and this can further lead to increase in cholesterol levels thus effecting the heart. Asthma, in general we refer to as “breathing problem”, apart from other reasons for asthma, stress also has effects on asthma. When a person is tensed or worried, he feels suffocated in breathing, which is nothing but asthma. If mother is stressed during pregnancy, it effects the brain development of fetus.
- Early and immature aging in kids – There is an evidence showing that kids grown up in a stressful environment have reduced chromosomal ends called ‘telomeres’ which are important for improving the lifespan. They behave abnormally when compared to other kids. Further they cannot mingle easily with other kids.
- Affects immune system – Your immune system becomes weak and the ability to fight against diseases decreases due to stress. People with stress are easily affected with infections frequently. Process of recovering from any illness is also delayed.
- High risk of heart attack – Heart is the major organ for our survival. Stress has major effects on heart. People with stress develop high blood pressure which ultimately effects and leads to heart stroke or heart attack.