Defining Stress
“Stress is the response of an organism to factors actually or symbolically endangering its integrity." (SD)
“Stress is a normal human reaction that happens to everyone. In fact, the human body is designed to experience stress and react to it. When you experience changes or challenges (stressors), your body produces physical and mental responses.” (CCO)
How Stress Affects Metabolism
Metabolism is defined as the chemical processes that occurs within a living organism in order to maintain life, and the stress response affects a number of chemical responses within the body.“Stress responses help your body adjust to new situations. Stress can be positive, keeping us alert, motivated and ready for danger. For example, if you have an important test coming up, a stress response might help your body work harder and stay awake longer. But stress becomes a problem when stressors continue without relief or periods of relaxation.” (CCO)
“Modern life stressors are typically chronic, family responsibilities, or health concerns. In this context, the stress response is not beneficial but rather becomes harmful, predisposing individuals to visceral obesity and cardiometabolic disease, a leading cause of death worldwide.” (SD)
“Irrespective of the type of stress, information about the situation converges on the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, a brain region crucially involved in the stress response.(SD)
The stress response mobilizes the body’s energy stores to respond to a threatening situation by activating the sympathetic nervous system which produces a cascade of neurotransmitter responses.
The Role of Thoughts & Emotions on Health
Thoughts and emotions can have a tremendous effect on our stress levels, which in turn can affect our metabolism and health. See the image below to learn the vibrational frequencies of different emotions.
“Emotions that are freely experienced and expressed without judgement or attachment tend to flow fluidly without impacting our health. On the other hand, repressed emotions (especially fearful and negative ones) can zap mental energy, negatively affect the body, and lead to health problems.
Negative attitudes and feelings of helplessness and hopelessness can create chronic stress, which upsets the body’s hormone balance, depletes the brain chemicals required for happiness, and damages the immune system. Chronic stress can actually decrease our lifespan.
Because we are wired to defend against threat and loss in life, we tend to prioritize bad over good. While this is a tidy survival mechanism for someone who needs to stay hyper vigilant in a dangerous environment, the truth is that for most of us, this “negativity bias” is counter-productive.
Negativity bias means that we spend too much time ruminating over the minor frustrations we experience – bad traffic or a disagreement with a loved one – and ignore the many chances we have to experience wonder, awe, and gratitude throughout the day.
To offset this negativity bias and experience a harmonious emotional state, Frederickson proposed that we need to experience three positive emotions for every negative one. This, she claims, can be done intentionally for those of us less “wired” to positivity. These positive emotions literally reverse the physical effects of negativity and build up psychological resources that contribute to a flourishing life.” (UMN)
Identify Limited Thinking Patterns
“To change your thinking, you must adopt the belief that your perception of the world is what determines your reality. When you discover how to effectively choose your perceptions, you change your ability to cultivate happiness. Because you have far more control over your internal world than your external world, this is the best place to decrease stress and raise your happiness. We are specifically referring to your response to situations via your thoughts, emotions, and actions. When you change your response, you change your experience of the situation. This single factor has the potential to dramatically alter the course of your life journey.” (TQMCT)
Limited thinking patterns address self talk that can lead to procrastination, depression and anxiety. Read below to recognize eight limited thinking patterns…
Filterizing
You focus on the negative details while ignoring all the positive aspects of a situation.
2. Polarized Thinking
Things are black or white, good, or bad. You must be perfect or you’re a failure. There’s no middle ground, no room for mistakes.
3. Overgeneralization
You reach a general conclusion based on a single incident or piece of evidence. You exaggerate the frequency of problems and use negative global labels.
4. Mind Reading
Without them saying so, you know what people are feeling and why they act the way they do. In particular, you have certain knowledge of how people think and feel about you.
5.Catastrophizing
You expect, even visualize disaster. You notice or hear about a problem and start asking “What if?” What if tragedy strikes? / What if it happens to you?
6.Magnifying
You exaggerate the degree or intensity of a problem. You turn up the volume on anything bad, making it loud, large, and overwhelming.
7.Personalization
You assume that everything people do or say is some kind of reaction to you. You also compare yourself to others, trying to determine who is smarter, more competent, better looking and so on.
8.Should
You have a list of ironclad rules about how you and other people should act. People who break the rules anger you and you feel guilty when you violate those rules (Limited Thinking Patterns)
One helpful way to combat patterns of limited thinking is by keeping a thought journal. First you describe the situation or circumstance that has caused the negative emotion (anger, sadness, depression, frustration, etc) then identify the limited pattern, next try changing your perspective of the situation by putting a more positive spin on it, finding something to be grateful for, etc and then re-evaluate how you feel.
Making Changes For The Better
Here are some ways to think and behave in a more optimistic and positive way:
Identify areas to change.
Identify areas of your life that you usually think negatively about, whether it’s work, your daily commute, or a relationship.
2. Check yourself.
Periodically during the day, stop and evaluate what you’re thinking. If you find your thoughts are mainly negative, try to find a positive spin on them.
3. Be open to humor.
Give yourself permission to smile or laugh, especially during difficult times. Seek humor in everyday happenings. When you can laugh at life, you feel less stressed.
4. Follow a healthy lifestyle.
Aim to exercise for about 30 mins on most days of the week. You can also break it up into 10-minute chunks of time during the day. Exercise can positively affect mood and reduce stress. Follow a healthy diet to fuel your mind and body. And learn techniques to manage stress.
5. Surround yourself with positive people.
Make sure those in your life are positive, supportive people you can depend on to give helpful advice and feedback. Negative people may increase your stress level and make you doubt your ability to manage stress in healthy ways.
6. Practice positive small talk.
Start by following one simple rule: Don’t say anything to yourself that you wouldn’t say to anyone else. Be gentle and encouraging with yourself. If a negative thought enters your mind, evaluate it rationally and respond with affirmations of what is good about you. Think about things you are thankful for in your life.” (CCO)
Learn Better Coping Strategies and Stress Reductions Techniques at Mind and Body Fitness Connections
Stress can be both good and bad. Unfortunately for most people, because they are bombarded by continual stress from bills, work, chronic pain and poor diet, a pattern is established that acts as a continual drain to their vitality and wellness. Cortisol levels stay high, which inevitably leads to inflammation, illness and unwanted weight gain or weight loss. To reverse this pattern and restore health, changes in thinking, eating, and sleeping must be made.
If stress is negatively impacting your life, we’ll work with you at Mind and Body Fitness Connections to help you overcome stress. Book an Initial Assessment today to learn how we can help you improve your lifestyle!
You can also learn techniques to decrease stress through Movement Classes offered within the Zen Zone at Mind and Body Fitness Connections where we practice stretching, Qigong, breath work and meditation.
Lauren Curtis
Blog Writer
