Impact of Stress

The Impact of Stress

Stress is a part of everybody’s life, whether he or she admits it or not. Nowadays, stress is so commonplace that most people do not realize the physical and mental symptoms they endure. Although stress can be good for a person, “long term stress can increase risk of diseases like depression, heart disease, and a variety of other problems” (“Stress,” par 1). Albeit there is no way to avoid all stress in one’s life, there are many ways to manage it.  
Stress is the body’s natural way of coping with pressure from everyday life. It is comparable to using NOS in a car race to gain that little advantage. When in a stressful situation, the human body releases adrenaline and cortisol. Adrenaline and cortisol increase a person’s speed, strength, and decrease the ability to feel pain. These chemicals enable the host to react to a threatening crisis. Normally the levels of adrenaline and cortisol decrease after time, allowing the body to calm down and return to normal. This phenomenon is called acute stress. When exposed to constant stress the body will keep producing these chemicals without giving itself the proper amount of time to recuperate. This is called chronic stress. Chronic stress causes numerous physical and mental symptoms, and can attribute to disease. Some symptoms include headaches, weight gain, colds, insomnia, trouble learning, trouble concentrating, and increased anger.   Heart disease and depression are some of many diseases that are stress-related.
There are many different causes of stress, and everyone experiences different types of stress.
However, anything that puts high demands on you or forces you to adjust can be stressful. This includes positive events such as getting married, buying a house, going to college, or receiving a promotion. What causes stress depends, at least in part, on your perception of it (“Understanding Stress”).
There is no way to dodge stress. Everyone experiences it. It may be a mid-life crisis...