How to Handle Stress

Understanding stress

You may experience acute stress or chronic stress. How do they differ? Acute stress is short-term stress that goes away quickly. It’s the kind of stress that happens when you drive in heavy traffic or have an argument with someone. Everyone feels acute stress from time to time.

Chronic stress, however, lasts longer. It could stem from a major life event, such as a:

• Death or loss of a loved one

• Divorce

• Job loss

• Move

• Natural disaster, such as a hurricane or tornado

• Medical crisis

The effects of stress

Stress harms both your mental and physical health. Stressors can affect your life for days, weeks, or even years. To cope, your body pumps out a lot of stress hormones. This may make you feel:

• Angry

• Irritable

• Depressed

• Anxious

• Unable to focus

Stress can also cause changes in your body that lead to health problems such as:

• Headaches

• Trouble sleeping

• Upset stomach

• Weight gain or weight loss

• Tense muscles

• High blood pressure

• Heart disease

• Stroke

Stress can also impact your immune system. This is your body’s defense against infection and sickness. You may notice you feel unwell more often if you’re stressed.

Everyone copes with stress differently. Some may turn to unhealthy habits, such as smoking, overeating, or drinking alcohol. These bad habits intensify the risk factors associated with heart disease. While you can’t avoid all stressors, you can learn to control your response to them.

Ways to cope with stress

Thankfully, there are things you can do to lower your stress when life throws you a curveball. Try practicing these simple actions throughout your day.

Exercise. Being active makes your brain produce feel-good hormones called endorphins. Any exercise, even just brisk walking, helps. If you can, try to workout outdoors and in nature. Studies show that may be even more calming.

Eat healthy foods. Stress hormones can make you hungrier. They may make you crave sugar and fat, too. But when you eat a lot of these foods, your body produces visceral fat. That’s a type of fat made deep inside your belly. Too much of it can raise your risk for developing heart disease and type 2 diabetes. You can still snack, but focus on fruits and vegetables instead. These are rich in nutrients that fuel your body. Research also shows that people who eat these foods report lower levels of stress.

Breathe deeply. When you’re stressed, you breathe quickly. When you breathe slower and more deeply it helps slow your nervous system down. Here’s how:

• Take a slow, deep breath in.

• Pause at the top of your inhale for 1 or 2 seconds.

• Exhale slowly and think of the word relax.

• Repeat this 5 to 10 times.

Do this whenever and wherever you feel stressed.

Text a friend. When you’re under stress, you may want to camp out in your room and be alone. But being social relieves stress. Why? It distracts you. It also helps to have someone to vent to. They can listen and offer support.

Get enough sleep. Being overtired can make you feel irritated and overwhelmed. Try going to bed earlier. Turn off electronics well before bedtime. Light from screens makes it harder to fall asleep. Aim for 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night.

Watch a funny movie. Like exercise, laughter raises levels of feel-good brain hormones, such as endorphins and serotonin. Even thinking about laughing has been shown to lower stress hormones.

Keep a journal. It doesn’t have to be a formal diary. Just jot down your thoughts and feelings whenever they hit you. Try not to think too much about what you write. Just let the words flow onto the paper or your computer screen. No one else will read it. It’s just to make you feel better.

There are also plenty of writing prompts that you can use to guide your journaling. Search online for some and see if any fit your specific stressors.

When to get help

It’s normal to feel stressed when you go through a big life change. But if your stress lasts for more than a couple of weeks, see your doctor. They may be able to help you or refer you to a mental health specialist.

Two types of treatment are known to help:

Talk therapy. A therapist or licensed mental health counselor can teach you ways to cope better with your stress.

Medicines. Your doctor may prescribe you certain medicines to use for a short period of time while you deal with your life stressors. Or they can refer you to a psychiatrist who is trained to treat mental health concerns with medicine. Common medicines for stress include:

• Antidepressants to boost your mood

• Antianxiety medicines

Remember, everyone experiences stress. But if you work to manage it, you can move on and find more joy in your life’s next chapter.

If you are thinking of harming yourself or others, call or text 988 . You will be connected to trained crisis counselors at the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline . This service is free and available 24/7.