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Imagine this, your alarm did not go off in the morning, you barely woke up to have enough time to jump out of bed, get dressed and run to the bus station, to get to work on time. On your way out the door, you realize that you forgot your cell phone. Of course you cannot go back as you will miss your bus and be late to work, so you tense up inside knowing what a thrown off day it will be. Just as you get to the station, you realize you missed your ride. Now you will be late for work and you don’t even have a phone with you to notify your boss.
It is at this moment, that you continue to feel extreme tensing of the insides of your body. Your heart may be racing, your stomach churning and your head beginning to throb. What you are feeling can be described by none other, than the word – STRESS.
So how did you feel reading that? Perhaps you have never been in that exact situation, but we have all experienced stress at one time or another in our lives. Most of us on a daily basis in fact!
Well what once started out as a survival mechanism, has today escalated to a mechanism that for the most part works against us and has led to an epidemic of ill health, as well as energy and mood disturbances. Let us thus go on a journey today to find out how stress was and can still be helpful, but how it has predominantly become extremely harmful.
The Origin of Stress
A long, long time ago…how long, well let’s just say about 30,000 years ago, early humans walked this Earth. Their average day probably consisted of fixing up their shelter, caring for their kids, as well as gathering and preparing food.
Life for them may have seemed hard and harsh according to us, but was in fact probably very simple for the most part. The reason for that was that the early humans lived very closely in balance with nature and hence were not easily upset if it got too cold outside, or dark too quickly or rained too much.
Their greatest stress probably came only from coming face to face with wild animals. Life was certainly lived much more “in the moment” and things just were as they were.
At such a time therefore, the stress response or what can also be called the “fight or flight response” was a very valuable thing. If one was faced with an enemy their body would immediately biochemically adjust to accommodate a “fight” or a “flight” reaction, to ensure survival.
Well let’s take ourselves over to present day. As humans have obviously greatly evolved in many areas over the past thousands of years, biochemically their bodies really have not. We are still prone today to the “fight or flight” response at any time that we feel there is an “unpleasant” or “hard” or “life-threatening” situation.
The main difference however is that although it may seem that the “fight or flight” response has become somewhat toned down, its frequency today has greatly increased.
What is the “Fight or Flight Response?”
The general idea behind this response is that whenever an organism is faced with a dangerous (or today unpleasant situation) it has one of two options: to stay and take on its “attacker/villain/situation” or to remove itself from the situation, and thus flee.
This response is innate to almost every organism in the animal kingdom and can even be seen on some much more subtle levels, in some species from other kingdoms. The point is survival and thus the body is doing what is best, in order that the organism survives.
So what exactly is the body doing?
When the senses, mostly the eyes pick up a “dangerous” situation, and register this with the brain, the body begins a series of reactions to counteract the danger by using its resources.
The purpose of the reactions is to drastically produce more energy, thus needing to bring glucose and oxygen in higher than normal levels, to the:
1) Brain – for it to become more alert and be able to strategize more efficiently
2) Muscles – to be able to flee or fight off attacker
And what symptoms do we feel during this time? All of the following, in various degrees:
1) Increased heart rate – to circulate the glucose and oxygen faster
2) Constriction of the blood vessels in skin – to limit bleeding in case wounds occur
3) Dilation of the blood vessels in the muscles and brain – to transport valuable resources faster
4) Conversion of stored glucose into available glucose by the liver
5) Increased sweat production – to lower body temperature, due to increased circulation
6) Increased breathing rate – to take in higher than normal oxygen levels for energy production
7) Increased circulation of hormones like cortisol and adrenaline – to dull effects of pain and sensitivity
8) Appetite suppression
Our body is going to go through all of these symptoms during the stressful situation, and then their opposite counterparts after the stressful situation is over, to bring the body back to balance.
How Something So Valuable Became So Destructive
While no one can argue that the “stress response” does not intrinsically hold great value, we also cannot deny the fact that today it has become grossly thrown out of balance.
What was once supposed to save our life, is today on many levels, taking away our life.
So what happened?
Well here are the two main differences between us and our human ancestors:
1)We, unlike our ancestors live “out of balance” with nature and thus almost on a daily basis find ourselves stressed by our surroundings.
2) Their stress periods may have been extreme, but were rather speaking rare occurrences. It wasn’t everyday that one confronted an angry lion face to face. Our stress responses, may seem more subdued, but for the most part are a daily occurrence for the majority.
See we have to understand, that there is technically nothing wrong with stress, as long as it is acute or rare and short-lived. Our bodies are not weak and helpless vessels that degrade at the first sign of stress. The problem of course is, that most of us live out a chronically stress-filled life. With that kind of environment then, naturally there is only so much our body can handle.
We know enough today, that although not one particular disease can be directly linked to stress, almost every single one is indirectly influenced by stress.
Every time you consciously find yourself stressed, remember what your body is physically doing. Hence, it has no chance to be repairing your tissues, building new molecules, fighting off pathogens, digesting your food properly and a whole slew of other things. Thus our health greatly suffers from stress.
Solution For Harmful Stress
While some of us today may still be faced at some odd time with a truly dangerous, life-threatening situation, at which time our stress response will be very valuable, for the most part the majority of us have to stop abusing this response.
Yes, I said it, we have to stop it. Remember, if you are not conscious, if you are not in control of your body then who is? It is only through accountability that we evolve forward to better solutions for ourselves and each other.
I know a lot of people say “well I can’t help it.” Consider the weight of that response, is it an empowering or dis-empowering one?
As the widely known spiritual teacher, Eckhart Tolle explains, “stress is nothing more than when we want something to be different from what is – thus stress comes from resisting what is.”
Thus, to give you practical applications for this statement would take one or perhaps many more articles which I will cover over time. But for today, I want you to just focus on that statement alone, and try to see how bringing awareness to that statement and finding peace and comfort in it, can be your first step to freeing yourself from chronic stress.
Accepting what is does not mean “giving up” or “giving in.” It means giving your awareness to the present moment and saying “yes”, perhaps even with gratitude to what is, in order to be fully aware of the growth available in each moment that life presents us with.
About the author:Evita Ochel, B.Sc., B.Ed., CHN - is the main author of EvolvingBeings.com where she writes about spiritual and personal development. She hopes to inspire people, to truly live out the life of their dreams and awaken the highest version of themselves. She is also a nutritional science and holistic health expert for optimal health and longevity. Learn more about Evita Ochel or Follow Evita Ochel on Twitter.
15 Comments to “The Helpful and Harmful Side of Stress”
Wonderful post Evita, very good points about stress, something that even the best of us may at times experience. I think stress has become so ‘normalized’ many of us do not even realized when our bodies are under stress and then we reach the point of burn out.
I think in one way to sum it up is be conscious of your every thought and emotion :)
toodles and keep it up :) A.
Hello Evita,
I am first time visitor of your blog through the TAG.
Your tag resonates me. I am thinking to prepare for my own :-) The process of preparation itself is evolution isnot it?
BTW, I have included you in my blogroll. Hope we will meet later via. blogs
Hello Anya,
Thank you and I really like too how you summarized “stress” – indeed consciousness is the way of the future. Some people may think that it is not possible to be conscious of each thought and emotion, and while at the start it may not be, with practice we can detach ourselves from our unconscious way of being very fully.
It is too bad that today it is accepted as “normal” – but that too I believe is going to change as more and more people wake up and reach for a higher state of existence.
Hello Journey Within!
It is great to see you here for the first time on Evolving Beings and so a big warm welcome to you!
And you are very right about preparation, when we prepare we contemplate some things, and when we contemplate we open ourselves up to new growth and thus, we evolve.
Thanks for the inclusion and I look forward to checking out your blog and reading your tag :)
Hi Evita,
As usual, I am finding what you write to be very insightful.
And it has me questioning – where am I letting stress into my life – where I don’t need to. See, I think I do pretty good at not letting stress rule. Yet, now as I think about it deeper, is that really the case? Or am I really just masking the stress as to not show it? I wonder if really, I need to look deeper, if what appears on the surface matches truly what’s inside.
Anyway, once again you’ve really got me thinking deeply on a subject you’ve written about (you have a way of doing that!!). It’s all good, though. I think it’s good for me to look deeper, to see if there are deeper issues that I’m masking.
Thank you for continuing to be a light for me Evita…
Evita, just this morning I realized I’ve been holding some stress for a number of days. It’s one thing to feel on edge and another entirely to truly know it, to stop being oblivious. ;)
And now here’s your terrific Tolle quote, with all its beautiful simplicity.
I will sink into my feelings (to acknowledge them) while pondering exactly what it is I’m resisting.
Perfect timing. THANK you!
PS: Isn’t it funny how we can know the concepts, even know how to apply and practice them, and yet still find ourselves caught unaware, sometimes… ;)
Hi Lance!
Thank you so much for your kind compliments as always.
I have to tell you, I will be the first to say I lead a very, and I mean very low stress life. In fact most of the time, I really feel I have zero stress. And yet sometimes I will catch myself in this tensed up feeling and think “wait a minute, what’s going on here?”
So you are right, many of us who have “mastered” not letting stress rule our life don’t feel it directly, but it is that indirect stress that creeps up on us from time to time and we realize there is always room for improvement.
The sure way to know that your body is experiencing mild stress is to check your breathing and realize how shallow it is most of the time and this is usually due to how caught up we get with some things in our days. Shallow breathing is actually another sign of stress to our body, it is usually the internal, indirect milder stress effect (the full blown fight or flight would be of course heavy breathing).
Another way to tell is if we ever experience any neck or shoulder muscle tension – residual stress has an amazing way of hiding out there.
Bottom line, I like how Anya above also said “many of us do not even realize when our bodies are under stress” — mainly because we ignore the first line of defence symptoms. Some of course don’t go past that, but some do and get worse symptoms that are hard to ignore.
Anyway, based on your positive and up lifting posts on your site, I have no doubt that you do live a relatively low stress life and that is wonderful, but being conscious and more aware of what might be lurking and causing us inner stress is always good to know what one’s body is up against.
Hi Julie,
As always you are so very welcome! And yes, yes, yes – we know so many concepts and so many facts and yet I find that from time to time life puts things a different way and we realize “wait a minute, I have always know that, so why am I falling prey to a negative situation, etc.”
I laugh as I think to myself, sometimes the easiest most logical things are the ones we consider last.
I personally love the Tolle quote as it opened my eyes to look at stress and actually understand what is it about it that makes people act out in so many various ways – and I totally agree with him. We want things a different way (which there doesn’t have to be anything wrong with that) BUT we either don’t move in the direction to change them or go about it completely the wrong way.
When we however bring in awareness and accept the moment of what is currently the situation before us, many times even before we think any new strategy, we already realize it is not as bad as we thought.
When we contemplate on what we are resisting, we also have to remember that resistance runs parallel to FEAR and it is that fear of the unknown that most often gets us all bent out of shape. But again if we take consciously and actively one moment at a time, we realize there really isn’t anything that I cannot handle!
Wishing you lots of pleasant, relaxed, calm and beautiful states :)
I “found” you and I enjoyed this insightful article Evita.
Stress “is” not accepting the love that “is”. It is also when we do not recognize and surrender to the knowing that the design of “all that we are” is “larger” than we can fathom.
So, let us then deepen into our joy; our lives, now, and the limited beliefs and dreams of yesterday and tomorrow will fade, as will the stress born of them.
namaste
Hi Richard!
I am so glad you found Evolving Beings.
I like how you put it too – that is so powerful “STRESS IS NOT ACCEPTING THE LOVE THAT IS”
There is indeed always a larger reason for everything and when we resist, then we are actually working against ourselves, which causes stunting of the spirit, instead of growth.
Great addition Richard!
Evita, you make a powerful statement about how people can follow the threads of their thoughts and behavior to better understand themselves. It is possible to rediscover that stress is an illusion that people create to distract themselves from truth. This can seem like a mouthful when so many people permit tension to distract them, trigger their emotions and control their focus. Anyone can break free from this delusion any time. Its a matter of raising awareness and then, making a new choice.
Wow, great insight. When I start to feel stressed about something, I try to break down my stress into smaller, more managable parts.
Small moves in the right direction can lead to the big goal………….:)
I like what you shared about stress. The saying from Eckhart Tolle definitely rings true! When I am stressed, I am definitely coming from a place of struggle.
Yes, stress comes from fear, from not trusting the flow of life. And I forgive myself for that! (just that reduces stress).
Oh!! You totally had me going through all the bodily stress signs, with your description of missing buses, and rides and forgetting the cell phone! Good writing, Evita!
These situations afford us great opportunities to learn to let go and learn. As Liara says, to raise awareness and make choices.
Like checking our alarm clocks!! :)
Actually my cell phone is a tried and true alarm, awaking me to the joy of peaceful harp music. Now that is the WAY to ease into a beautiful day!! :)
xoxo
Hi Evita! Powerful writing – and spot on too of course! I’m finishing up my classes for certified natural health consultant and the three T’s that cause illness and disease? Thoughts – Toxins – Timing. In that thought catagory of Course is Stress! It is really easy to get caught up in it mentally and not ever realize what it is doing to our bodies! Boy we need to tune in to that more! It isn’t ALL healthy eating – it’s a LOT about healthy thinking!
Hugs
suZen