If we don't recognise the signs of stress, those around us may be aware we're stressed and can be on the receiving end.
Stress
Although some stress can be good for us because it keeps us motivated and alert, in some cases stress can even make us aware of danger signs and how best to avoid them. In abundance stress can make us ill.
Living with stress
Living with stress without any relief, can lead to 'negative stress reactions.' Stress is known to disturb the internal balance that can lead to physical symptoms, if stress persists. Those symptoms can include headaches, high blood pressure, insomnia and stomach aches.
Stress can increase disease
Stress can also lead to emotional problems such as anxiety and depression. It can hasten other symptoms and increase disease. As long as we know and understand what our stress is, we can turn stress and stressful situations around.
By changing the way that we think about things, by us being more proactive and dealing with our issues and us simplifying our lifestyles, we can help put the lid on stress.
Sometimes is comes and goes and sometimes it is with us for an age, but recognising the signs of stress and minimising our exposure to stressors wherever possible is so important.
Thank you. Yes, it's sad that some of us give up at the first signs of stress and rely on others to change, or we expect others to fix us.
And that's not how stress or our lives work. And although understanding our lives is the catalyst for dealing with stress.
If we don't understand our lives or experiences in its entirety, we're less likely to do anything about it.
Nobody ever really showed me how to handle stress other than my dad with his drinking and my mom with popping a handful of pills.
We weren't really encouraged or allowed to express what the stress was doing to us as kids, since my parents never really seemed to notice anyway. The world was just great as long as dad had his bottle of booze and mommie dearest had her favorite pills.
I'm living in an environment right now where I try very hard to keep the stress levels down to a bare minimum, but my girlfriend seems to thrive on it, so it's like we are from two different worlds.
I'm very well aware of what is causing most of the stress in my life, so now I just need to make the changes that I need to make, no matter whether it's going to be very pleasant or not, for my sanity's sake!
Thanks Randy. You said it yourself, 'I just need to make the changes that I need to make' and you'd be right. It will always be up to us to decide how we want our lives to go.
Sometimes our parents are the perfect role models and we have little to learn from them, sometimes they're not and we need to learn where to make the changes.
And where our parents have clearly failed, we need to be able to do better for our own children. I believe you can. It's up to you to decide which way you want your life to go.
Stress leaves me strong but badly wounded; perhaps that's a good thing, I don't know.
Thanks Tim. It depends whether you being badly wounded is something you carry. If the stress you carry is from past experiences, but you're strong enough to pick yourself up quickly and move on from, then no harm done.
If we continue to carry our wounds like a burden, from stress we're not able to get over, then over a longer period of time anyone of us could get ill.
It really is important we talk about how we feel. Get our thoughts out into the open.