Managing stress may be key to solving serious health challenges

A new study has found that stress significantly contributes to metabolic syndrome, meaning that simply managing stress can be key to a host of health issues.

Metabolic syndrome is a wide range of conditions that work together to raise one's risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and several other health concerns that usually occur later in life.

You see, these things usually come with age. It's like the body taking years of wear and tear and finally breaking down. From several past studies, it's evident that stress impacts the body in ways that expedite the aging process by causing inflammation in cells. That is, the more perpetual stress you put your mind and body understand, the faster your body wears away. Even gray hair has been linked to stress.

Of course, there are myriad factors in life we can't do anything about, such as time, but stress isn't one of them. We definitely can do something about the intensity of stress we subject our bodies to.

Consequently, stress management may be one of the cheapest solutions to health issues. Methods like mindfulness, meditation, walking in nature, sleeping when needed, and relaxing with family cost nothing.

The new research showed that stress indeed contributes to metabolic syndrome, with inflammation accounting for 61.5% of that contribution.

In short, stress is one of the various factors that put many health markers in disarray, opening a pathway for diseases to show up.

So what can we do?

In our fast-paced lives, we seldom have time to take a step back and unwind. There's always work to do. And that, precisely, is why we must take a step back and unwind. Because there's always something to worry about, always a to-do list to attend to. It never ends.

The best we can do is allow our bodies to recharge, to re-energize to face what else we have on our to-do list. For our health's sake.

Truth is, while you are yet young, your body is resilient enough to withstand the stress. Even though the body doesn't budge, the trauma from the stress leaves internal “cracks” that compound over time. And soon, the body can't hold it together anymore.

So, managing stress is not a sign of weakness, but an indication you're intelligent enough to understand your body and your needs, to protect your future by prioritizing your health now.

Take a break; practice mindfulness meditation, read a book, go on that much-needed vacation. Whatever works for you as stress relief.

More on the research here.

If you feel stuck in a loop, unable to break free from a constant state of chronic stress, we can help you find peace again through a range of remedies personalized for you, from medication to therapy and everything in between. Give us a call.

Author

Satu H. Woodland, PMHCNS-BC, APRN Satu Woodland is owner and clinician of Hope Mental Health, an integrative mental health practice located at Bown Crossing in Boise, Idaho. She sees children, adolescents, and adults.  Ms. Woodland with her background in nursing, prefers a holistic and integrative approach to mental health care that addresses the mind and body together. While Ms. Woodland provides medication management services in all her patients, she believes in long-lasting solutions that include a number of psychotherapies, namely cognitive behavioral therapy, exposure and response prevention therapy, attention to lifestyle, evidenced based alternative psychiatric care and spirituality. If you’d like to gain control over your mental health issues, call Hope Mental Health at 208-918-0958, or use the online scheduling tool to set up an initial consultation.