How Stress Affects Overall Health

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Having stress affect your overall health today is a widespread concern. While, the signs of stress are numerous and worth discussing, of more importance is learning the best ways to relieve stress. This article answers the question, "How does stress affect health?" as well as describes one of the best ways to relieve stress permanently and decrease aging. 
SIGNS OF STRESS: At first glance, you may think that having stress affect your overall health is solely limited to your physical body. But it goes deeper than just the physical plane. It also affects our mental, emotional, behavioral and spiritual levels as well. Let's take a look at answering the question, "How does stress affect health on all levels?" 
PHYSICAL EFFECTS OF STRESS: Our …show more content…

Having these stress hormones then continually "running rampant" inside your body slowly wears out the internal mechanisms or organs so that diseases such as high blood pressure or heart disease can take hold as well as "keeps your body too busy" for daily immune functions that keep your body overall healthy. This is where the commonly known physical effects of stress come into play such as fatigue, digestive problems, insomnia, muscle aches and pains, including the chest pain stress we feel when we're under pressure. 
In fact, there is a significant correlation between stress and hair loss. Why? Because your body literally sheds everything that isn't vital to survival when it is kept in a chemically stressful …show more content…

WAYS TO RELIEVE STRESS: Once you decide that you want to learn how to reduce stress, there are a few simple things you can do: 
TIP #1: GET PHYSICAL: Walk, run, bike, swim, dance or jump up and down at your desk for a few minutes. When you start feeling stressed, do anything that will loosen up your body and break the stress hormone cycle. 
TIP #2: GET "MINDFULLY" PHYSICAL: Combining physical stress management and relaxation techniques for the mind together works wonders. Examples of this would be doing mindful exercises such as yoga, Pilates, Tai chi or other mind-body practices. 
TIP #3: BREATHE: Our bodies need air, yet the simple act of breathing is forgotten when the body becomes stressed. Become conscious of your breathing all day, regardless of what you are doing otherwise. 
TIP #4: TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR MIND: In learning how to manage stress, one aspect is simply to take control of your thoughts. While this is easier said than done, by continually doing this you can create a chemical addiction to positive thoughts, which in turn makes it easier to handle stressful

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