4 consequences of stress staying in the body

Historically speaking, stress is a mental and physical state that humans used to navigate threats. In fact, it played a key role in life as stress is responsible for the flight or fight response. When a threat, or stressor, presents itself, the body naturally releases hormones like adrenaline, cortisol, and norepinephrine. These hormones influence the heart to beat faster, the lungs to dilate, the digestive system to slow, and the liver to release more glucose. While these hormones have served vital purposes in evolution, now, they pose a threat to the body. I, Wayne Emerson Gregory Jr., have seen firsthand how destructive stress can be when it becomes chronic. Patients who endure stress for long periods no longer receive benefits from the evolutionary response. Rather, sustained stress causes changes to the body which affects daily life in many ways. The following are four consequences that result from prolonged stress.

Cardiovascular Problems

When stress occurs, hormones are released in the body which tell the heart it needs to increase its contractions. Take, for example, a case where you’re in the car and get a rush of adrenaline as somebody almost switched lanes into you. This experience likely left your heart pounding. The same is true of stress from different threats, such as workplace stress or stress about the future. Over time, chronic stress can elevate your heart rate to unhealthy. However, your heart rate increasing is not the only thing that occurs. Your blood vessels begin to tighten and your blood pressure increases from the presence of stress. When someone deals with sustained levels of stress, their heart rate and blood pressure also stay high. This can lead to long-term problems in the cardiovascular system. Over time, having high blood pressure and a high heart rate can lead to inflammation in the arteries. This, in turn, increases one’s risk for heart attack and stroke.

Weakened Immune System

Patients who consistently experience stress levels suffer from a weakened immune system. Various hormones released due to stress suppress the immune system’s ability to fight off infections and incoming pathogens. Stress causes the number of white blood cells and NK cells to decrease. Essentially, when stress levels are maintained for long periods, the body becomes unable to effectively fight off infections, viruses, cancer, and more.

What’s more, as someone experiences consistent stress, they often deal with a lack of sleep, and some people may participate in coping strategies like smoking or alcohol consumption. These behavioral changes associated with stress can further damage one’s ability to fight infections.

Muscle Pain/Headaches

Most people have felt tension in their neck, shoulders, or back from stress. It’s a common symptom of stress, as when a threat is perceived, muscles tense up. Ideally, this tension is released when the individual is no longer stressed. However, in the case of chronic stress, one’s muscles are constantly in tension. This can lead to regular back or neck pain, an inability to get a proper night’s rest, and further stress. This extended muscle tension can also lead to migraines and headaches. The stressor that causes this does not quite matter. Muscle tension could be due to workplace stress, a physical injury, or something else.

Mood Related Issues

Although stress can play significant roles in one’s physical body, it has similar effects to one’s mental health state. As a healthcare professional, I have witnessed how stress can control one’s mood and mental health.

Emotions are heavily regulated by the hormones in one’s body. As stress causes hormones to be released, various emotions are experienced like anxiety, sadness, frustration, and more. The release of hormones in response to stress causes an imbalance in the HPA axis that may be hard to correct with sustained stress. Researchers have established concrete connections between chronic stress and an increased likelihood to experience depression. Additionally, chronic stress has been found to increase the severity of depressive symptoms.

The Bottom Line

Stress is an important characteristic of human life, solely in regards to short term situations. When humans experience constant stress, it takes a great toll on them. Stress can affect one’s physical, mental, and emotional health. If you feel as though you frequently deal with stress, please, contact me, Wayne Emerson Gregory, with any health-related questions.

By Wayne Emerson Gregory Jr.