The Many Ways Stress Affects Your Body

Stress is something inevitable and normal in everyday life. But how bad can stress actually be on your body? You may be surprised to learn the many ways that stress impacts your body and overall wellbeing.

Understanding what stress is
Stress can be best described as a feeling of worry or unease when you’re under a certain amount of pressure. How much stress you can handle may depend on a lot of different things. The main point to remember is that if you don’t handle stress well for a long period of time, you may run the risk of your body getting so overwhelmed that it causes harmful effects.

How to know if you’re stressed out
There are a few ways to know if you’re feeling pretty stressed out. Some of these signs you may or may be aware of.

Difficulty sleeping
Do you constantly feel tired all the time? Depending on the source of the stress, it may affect your energy, and you may have trouble getting restful sleep. It’s normal to deal with these issues if you work.

Changes in sexual desire
Your sex drive can vary depending on how often you get stressed out. You’re more likely to get sexually aroused if you don’t typically deal with a lot of stress. However, if you deal with constant stress, you may not be in the mood for intimacy.

Higher risk of getting depression or bipolar disorder
You may have probably felt down at some point by being overwhelmed by stress. In addition, you may be more vulnerable to stress if you suffer from mental health conditions such as major depression and bipolar disorder.

Suffer from stubborn acne
If you’re typically under a lot of stress most of the time, you may have a tendency to get pimples. One study showed that this is because you may be more likely to want to touch your face when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

Experience more headaches
It has been shown that you’re more likely to have headaches when you’re under constant stress. This is especially true if you suffer from anxiety in addition to the stress you get from other areas of your life.

The takeaway from stress is that you can’t escape it. There will be situations in your life where you may experience stress. The key is to know what you can handle so that stress doesn’t hurt your body so horribly in the long run.