In 2018 the Mental Health Foundation carried out a nationwide stress survey and found that “over the past year, almost three quarters (74%) of people have at some point felt so stressed that they felt overwhelmed or unable to cope.”
That’s a lot of stress. And these are pre-pandemic figures!
We all know what it feels like to be stressed. But do you know what’s happening in your body at a physiological level? What exactly is the stress response? And can massage therapy help you manage stress?
Stress is that feeling of mental or emotional tension or strain. It's your body's reaction to feeling threatened or under pressure. You need a certain amount of "motivational" stress to go about your life and get stuff done. But sometimes the demands of life become too much and stress can start to affect your health.
When it comes to stressors you’ve got all the big hitters like work, relationships, money, caring responsibilities. The list goes on. And then you’ve got the small things like the daily commute, self service check outs and parallel parking. It’s no wonder 74% of us feel overwhelmed and unable to cope.
The speed at which this "motivational" stress becomes less helpful is different for each person. Everyone reacts to stressors differently. What’s stressful for one person might be a walk in the park for someone else.
There are 11 physiological systems in the body which impact on your overall health. When these are all working at optimal levels, the body is said to be in a state of homeostasis. Everything is ticking away nicely, keeping you alive.
But every day you're bombarded with stressors that produce what's known as a stress response, This knocks the systems of the body out of their homeostatic balance.
The stress response starts and ends in the nervous system. Your nervous system literally controls everything in your body. The part of the nervous system that controls your stress response is your autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS controls automatic functions like breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and dilation of blood vessels and airways.
The ANS is split into two divisions – sympathetic nervous system (where your stress response starts) and the parasympathetic nervous system (where your stress response ends). Think of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) as the accelerator pedal and the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS) as the brake.
Fight or flight
At the first sign of danger, the amygdala in the brain picks up sensory information and sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus (the bit in charge of your ANS). The hypothalamus engages the sympathetic nervous system by sending signals to the adrenal glands. The adrenal glands then flood your bloodstream with adrenaline. With this adrenaline surge,
You may also experience sweating, dry mouth, tremors, and muscle tension. These physiological responses help you deal with the threat in front of you.
As the adrenaline wears off more signals are sent out to trigger the release of stress hormone number two. Cortisol has entered the chat.
Cortisol is the hormone that keeps your SNS revved up to deal with ongoing danger. With the SNS on constant high alert your adrenal glands continue to pump stress hormones into your blood stream. This helps you “power through”, long after the fight or flight stage has passed.
Once the danger has passed your parasympathetic nervous system kicks in. Its responsible for returning you to homeostasis – it brings balance to the force. Your heart rate and blood pressure return to normal and stress hormone levels in the bloodstream fall. All is well again.
Chronic stress and burnout
Most of the time stressors are short-lived and our body returns to homeostasis fairly quickly. However, there are times when stressful situations keep cropping up or can take a long time to resolve. This is chronic stress.
Long periods of chronic stress can leave you feeling mentally and physically exhausted, and struggling with life. This is known as burnout. The systems of the body are in a state of exhaustion and can no longer function properly.
Over time chronic stress and prolonged exposure to cortisol can lead to health problems like:
If you are struggling with stress and concerned about your health, book an appointment with your GP.
Yes! Anything that promotes relaxation is a winner when it comes to managing stress.
Massage uses positive, therapeutic touch to engage the parasympathetic nervous system and return you to homeostasis. Massage helps to:
Massage is a great way to help you manage stress and give your body and mind a much needed break.
After your treatment you'll feel more relaxed and ready for a good night’s kip. You might even fall asleep on the treatment couch!
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