How to Handle Stress?

When you’re able to recognize the signs — instead of ignoring them — you’ll be able to start addressing the underlying cause of the stress.

Frequent stress decreases your immune system

“Most often the reason your blood pressure rises at work is because you’re being asked to do something important” by your boss or a colleague and you want to succeed, says Menkes.

In women, stress may mess up your regular menstrual cycles

“The stress symptoms are telling you: This matters.” Shift your thinking about the task causing you distress and instead try to view it as “an opportunity to move forward that you want to take seriously,” he adds.

Stress may affect your libido

The goal is to “use that adrenaline pop” to focus your nervous energy, “heighten your attention, and really apply yourself.”

Chronic stress can cause substance abuse

When you’re stressed, the voice inside your head gets loud, screechy, and persistent. It tells you: “I’m so angry,” or “I’ll never be able to do this.”

Stress increases your risk for type 2 diabetes

To keep this negative voice at bay, “try talking to yourself in a logical, calm tone and injecting some positivity” into your internal dialogue, says Gonzalez.

Although stress doesn’t directly cause ulcers, it can aggravate any existing ulcers you may already have.

“Say something like, ‘I have had an assignment like this in the past and I succeeded.

Weight gain from chronic stress is possible

I can handle this, too.’ Or, if you are faced with an unrealistic request, tell yourself:

High blood pressure develops from chronic stress

‘I am going to calm down before I go back and tell my manager that completing this assignment in this amount of time is not possible.’”

Stress is bad for your heart

Deep breathing is another simple strategy for alleviating in-the-moment tension. “When you feel anxious, your breath starts to get shorter, shallower, and more irregular,” says Gonzalez.

This could be a flashback or a more significant reminder related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Women are up to three times more likely to have PTSD than men.

“Taking three big breaths while being conscious of your belly expanding and contracting ignites your parasympathetic nervous system, which induces a relaxation response.”

You can do this while also lowering your shoulders, rotating your neck, or gently rolling your shoulders.

Your genes can dictate the way you handle stress

Deep breathing also helps preempt stress symptoms if you need to, say, get on a tense conference call or deliver bad news in a performance review.

This response all starts with a part of your brain called the hypothalamus. When you’re stressed, the hypothalamus sends signals throughout your nervous system and to your kidneys.