Eight Signs That You Are Stressed

There is a metaphor that is often used describing a frog being boiled alive. It is based on the premise that if a frog is put into boiling water it will quickly jump out, however if the frog is put in tepid water which is slowly brought to a boil it will not perceive the danger in this situation and will be boiled alive. While there is some debate around how true this metaphor is in reality, the moral of the story does ring true.

Sometimes we are not consciously aware of just how much stress we are under. Maybe we are subconsciously suppressing these emotions or perhaps we have become so accustomed to feelings of stress that these feelings have become ‘normal’ to us. Whatever the case, stress can often show up in sudden and unpleasant ways. It is therefore important to be aware of the physical and psychological warning signs of stress.

Irritability: Work keeps piling up, the housework seems to be never ending and then your friend has the audacity to complain about how busy they are. Usually you’d hear them out, maybe offer some empathy but this time you can’t help but snap. All of your built up frustration may end up presenting in an aggressive (or passive aggressive) manner – even when you don’t mean it.

Headache: The most common type of stress-induced headache is commonly referred to as a tension-type headache. Often this can come about as a result of tense muscles, particularly in your back and neck.

Lower Immune System: It seems that it was only last week that you recovered from your cold and now you’re already sick with another one. When we are stressed our cortisol levels are also elevated. Cortisol has been proven to suppress ones immune system. This means that not only do we become more susceptible to illness but also that it may take us longer to recover.

Exhaustion: Do you ever find yourself collapsing on the couch at the end of the day, too tired to even think about cooking, cleaning or catching up with friends? Does this happen more often than not? When we are under stress our adrenal glands release stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline into our bloodstream. While this is beneficial for short-term stress when we are exposed to this on a longer-term basis our adrenal glands become tired and we may begin to experience ‘adrenal fatigue’ leading to these feelings of exhaustion.

Rapid heart rate: An increase in heart rate is a natural response to danger – fear causes the brain to release adrenaline, which speeds up our breathing and heart rate giving us the energy to fight or flee. However this same reaction may occur as a result of nonthreatening events such as stress and anxiety leading to an increased heart rate or even heart palpitations.

Eating more or less: Stress may cause us to overindulge in food; perhaps as a coping mechanism and for others it may cause a reduction in appetite. While each person is different, a change in eating habits may be a warning sign that you are under stress.

Concentration difficulties: Have you ever sat down to begin one task … and found yourself thinking of fifty others. When we are stressed it can often be difficult to focus on one task at a time and we may often find our thoughts are racing, disorganised and difficult to get a handle on.

Substance dependency: For many people it’s coffee; we need that boost of energy to increase our concentration levels and keep us focused. For others it is more harmful substances such as drugs and alcohol that we use to ease our anxieties. When we find ourselves depending on substances to get us through the day this may be a sign that we are dealing with stress.

Stress is subjective and can impact different people in different ways however it can be useful to keep an eye out for some of these warning signs. They are often our body and our minds ways of letting us know that there is a deeper issue at play.