Depending on the nature and severity of stress, the body’s response can be either positive or negative. In positive responses, one gets alerted about dangerous situations or is motivated for something good for oneself. For example if your life is under a threat, the body’s autonomic system responds by coordinating with the hormonal system to prepare you for fight, flight or freeze conditions. Here more blood is pumped into skeletal muscle to make them stronger either for fight or for flight.

Stress by definition is a condition or a troubleshooting type of response to a concerning situation. When a person experiences stress frequently, it starts impacting their mental health leading to conditions such as anxiety, mood disorders, psychosis, depression, chronic fatigue and substance abuse.

Impact of stress on your mental health.

Stress brings about changes in the body and these changes can be from mild to severe depending on the intensity of the stimulus.

Stress-related symptoms are mostly emotional or behavioral. When a person is under stress, the autonomic system in the brain takes control of the body. And this system regulates hormones, and the functioning of the stomach, gut, and heart.

Under stressful conditions, the heart, lungs, and kidneys perform a lot more actively. So heart rate and breathing are increased short-term, the muscles become tenser and the kidneys produce more urine. In this way anxiety, and stressful conditions prepare our body for a ‘fight or flight case scenario.

How long does stress last?

Stress is an innate response of the body and a natural phenomenon. In our daily life, it’s completely normal to feel stressed sometimes. But how long it stays, depends on the intensity of the stressor. Almost everyone experiences mild to moderate stresses that are short-lived. But when stress is prolonged it can negatively affect every aspect of our lives. This causes an unhealthy lifestyle and behavior. Often, these unwarranted stressors are due to triggers. And these triggers vary from person to person. For example, fear of public speaking. This kind of situation puts a lot of pressure on certain people. That is why it is important to know, and avoid your triggers.

Each person has different reasons for stress and emotional distress, similarly the duration and longevity of stress are also varied in different people.

Prevention and Treatment of Stress

Emotional stress can be due to a variety of triggers. These can be because of internal or external factors involving your social life, including one’s mental state and environmental factors. That is why it is important to dig out your triggers first.This can be done alone or with the help of a professional. It will make things easier to deal with ongoing stress. Some of us may need professional help with this.

Here are a few significant steps that can help manage acute or chronic stressful conditions:

Do regular exercises.
Exercising is the best and most natural mechanism to cope with stressful conditions of the body. There are a range of exercise options such as attending a gym regularly, swimming, doing morning yoga with meditation, and indulging actively in sports activities or playing music will bring a lot of positive changes in one’s mental state. It is a well-established fact that exercises produce stress-relieving hormones in the human body. These in turn detoxify the blood and improve mental and physical health.

Have a support system.
Most of the time people are depressed because of a lack of attention, empathy, and social support. That is why it is very important to identify and form a social circle around you. Make few but good friends. Whenever you feel sad, low on mood, or depressed, reach out to them. One may also attend stress management programs, and social support classes, and by visiting some healthcare professionals in this regard.

Eat healthily.
Eating healthy foods such as fruits, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, and plentiful fluids will make your gut healthier and will purify the blood. It also has detoxifying effects on the body and brain. Additionally, eating healthy foods will help control mood disorders.

NOTE: sugar causes the body to react similarly to stress, so avoid where possible.

Practice relaxation techniques.
Scientific evidence has shown that by adopting muscle relaxation habits, one can control stressful conditions in the body. For example, mindfulness, getting a regular whole-body massage, yoga, meditation, and deep belly breathing can be helpful in acute stressful situations. 

Manage and prioritize tasks.
To avoid being sad, emotional, and feeling stressed try to establish your mechanism where you can address your relevant problems as per their urgency and needs. For example, it is very important to manage the most important tasks at the earliest, and lesser important tasks can be done when you have spare time. So prioritizing your daily tasks will give you some mental peace.

Know your triggers.
A person who recurrently becomes a victim of anxiety and emotional disturbance must identify their warning triggers. Most of the time these triggers are the causative agents responsible for the emotional trauma. Hence it is better to know your triggers, avoid them or control them before they make your mental situation worsen.