Chronic Stress On The Body: 4 Different Systems Affected & What You Can Do

The human body is well-equipped to handle acute stress, or stress in small doses. However, when stress builds in duration and quantity, it becomes chronic and it can have serious affects on your physical and emotional well-being.

What

Can

We

Do?

Let’s take a closer look at what the American Psychological Association reports and hone in on 4 bodily systems affected by stress. We’ll discern between chronic and acute symptoms and address some positive steps you can take to manage chronic stress in your life.

1. Cardiovascular System

   Made up of the heart, blood, and blood vessels (arteries and veins), we know this system best as the “blood pumper.”

   1. Acute: Acute cardiovascular stress can be helpful as it gives a boost of energy and tells us that we need to get up and get moving.

      • Let’s set the scene: You are walking your dog and he/she gets off leash, running towards a busy street. Your blood starts pumping, heart rate increases, adrenaline roars, and you’re programmed and ready to run like heck to grab him/her. Your fight or flight response is activated, and as soon as you grab your dog to safety the stress episode passes and your body returns to its normal state.

   2. Chronic: Chronic cardiovascular stress can have damaging affects on your organs.

      • New scene: You are dealing with many stressors and it just hasn’t ended: work, family life, financial woes. Slowly, your psychological resources have been drained. The body cannot just “snap back” to its normal state.

      • This continuous increase in your heart rate, elevated levels of stress hormones, and higher blood pressure have a negative impact on the body, including an increased risk for hypertension, heart attack, and stroke.

2. Endocrine System

   Hormone production. Key hormone here is Cortisol.

   1. Acute

      • Cortisol production allows us to tap into more energy (by essentially breaking down glucose storage). During a short period of stress, we get the extra energy needed to deal with it.

   2. Chronic

      • Prolonged cortisol production can mess up how the endocrine system responds and reacts to other things in the body. I like to think of it like this: If you’re on the phone with your friend and you just cant end the conversation, other phone calls coming in aren’t being answered. In this situation, the cortisol is your friend and the incoming calls are different requests from your body needing support from the endocrine system (you).

      • This communication disruption can lead to chronic fatigue, diabetes, obesity, depression, and other immune disorders.

3. Autonomic Nervous System

   Remember school science class? Think Sympathetic & Parasympathetic.

   1. Acute

      • Stress comes, the sympathetic nervous system is activated, and the body is ready to take on a challenge! When the stress passes, the parasympathetic system activates, returning the body to its normal state of calm.

   2. Chronic

      • If the sympathetic nervous system is on overdrive, the body starts to wear down. You become more susceptible to illness and your normal bodily functions may be disturbed.

4. Musculoskeletal System

   Our muscles!

   1. Acute

      • When the body is stressed, our muscles tense. With acute stress, our muscles tense up. When the stress event ends, we release the tension and relax.

   2. Chronic

      • Chronic stress keeps the muscles tensed for long periods. Tense muscles limit our range of motion, pull our joints out of alignment and increase our risk for injury. In addition, tension headaches/ migraines are linked to chronic muscle tension in the upper body.

Now that we’ve learned a little about how stress affects these 4 bodily systems, let’s discuss how we can manage our stress to keep it from becoming chronic.

Three vital components of stress management include:

1. Get Regular Exercise

   The CDC guidelines recommend either:

   1. 150 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise & 2 strength building activities a week

   2. 75 minutes of vigorous cardiovascular exercise & 2 strength building activities a week

   3. An appropriate mix of moderate and vigorous cardiovascular exercise & 2 strength building activities a week

2. Get Enough Sleep

   The CDC recommends 7 or more hours of sleep a night for adults. Teenagers 13-18 are recommended to have between 8-10 hours of sleep a night.

3. Build Strong Social Support

   Having people around you that “fill your cup” is HUGE. Studies show that having an active social support network can contribute to positive emotional and physical health and help you deal with stress. As John’s Hopkins Medicine reports, there are different forms of social support:

   1. Physical or practical assistance (e.g., transportation, assistance with chores)

   2. Resource and information sharing (i.e., information on community resources)

   3. Emotional and physiological assistance (i.e., someone who listens to and encourages you)

   4. Attitude transmission (i.e., someone who helps you laugh or see things more positively)

Overall, taking proactive steps can have a huge impact on your health. If you feel the effects of chronic stress and are unsure of where to begin, contact me to discuss some realistic changes that will greatly improve your well-being.