Though stress is often seen as inherently negative, integrative expert and Mayo Clinic physician Safia Debar, M.B.B.S., argues that stress can actually benefit you.
“Stress can be your ally and your path to resilience,” Dr. Debar says.
But doesn’t mean stress is universally good. Left unexamined and unmanaged, chronic stress can do major damage.
“If we are unaware of stress, it can also shorten our lives and reduce our quality of life, affecting us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually,” she says.
Instead, she advocates for examining the role of stress in your life as a way to help you take stock of your routine and create space for a more intentional, balanced lifestyle. Dr. Debar runs stress management and resiliency courses to walk people through this process.
Below, Dr. Debar breaks down exactly what stress is and how you can better navigate it.
Understanding the stress response
To understand how stress impacts us — in both biological terms and in the most personal sense — it helps to have a basic understanding of how stress works.
At its most foundational, stress is a response to a demand.
“I tend to use a very neutral definition of stress,” says Dr. Debar. “We have physical or psychological demands placed on us, the body responds and then seeks a return to baseline or ‘normal.'”
As humans, we deal with demands all the time, even if we don’t always notice. For example, you may feel thirsty (a demand), get a glass of water (response) and drink until you feel satisfied (return to baseline).
This cycle of demand, response and recovery can be generally understood as the stress response. When the body experiences a demand — also commonly referred to as a “perceived threat” — an automatic “domino effect” process begins in the brain and body. The adrenal glands release hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, which in turn makes your heart beat faster, raises blood pressure and tenses up your muscles. This reaction, says Dr. Debar, is designed to help keep you focused and able to respond appropriately to your environment.
Meanwhile, cortisol slows other “nonessential” functions involving the immune, digestive and reproductive systems.
Once the demand is met — or the perceived threat has passed — the body can then return to baseline. This recovery phase is critical, says Dr. Debar, as it shifts the nervous system from the “fight, flight or freeze” phase into the “rest and digest” phase. Recovery also prevents wear and tear on the body and mind.
“Once everything calms down, the heart rate comes down, the blood pressure calms down and the immune system shifts to repair. This is what we call our baseline, where we feel calm, relaxed and safe,” says Dr. Debar.
The complete stress response — that includes recovery — can actually boost resiliency, as it can build up confidence and experience dealing with uncertain situations.
Chronic stress takes a toll on your body and health
However if stress becomes chronic, your body may get “stuck” in a state of fight or flight activation or unable to properly recover.
There is evidence that long-term stress and exposure to cortisol can increase your risk for a range of health conditions including heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure and stroke. Chronic stress impacts everyone differently, but you also may experience mental health conditions like anxiety and depression, muscle tension and pain, changes in your weight, as well as sleep and digestive issues. Finally, studies suggest that stress not only ages you more quickly, but also ages your immune system, potentially putting you at increased risk of illness and age-related diseases.
Taken together, it’s no surprise that chronic stress can lower your quality of life — and potentially impact your lifespan.
Stress from cultural, structural sources
But reducing stress isn’t always as simple as making a few lifestyle changes or talking about mental health. Recovery from stress requires safety — the removal of a perceived threat or stressor. For people who regularly face discrimination, economic insecurity or harassment, a state of safety isn’t always accessible.
Often, marginalized people are forced to “weather” not only discrimination, but also the toll it takes on their bodies and minds. For example, hypertension and diabetes in African American, Native Hawaiian and Latin American communities have been linked to chronic stress associated with discrimination. Likewise, stigma and prejudice put LGBTQ people at a higher risk for certain mental health conditions as well as a higher risk of alcohol, tobacco and substance use among LGBT youth. Often, these communities also may struggle to access adequate care, due to economic or geographic factors, as well as cultural competency issues and discrimination on the part of healthcare teams.
In short, stress doesn’t exist in a vacuum; it is biological, cultural and structural. To fully understand how stress impacts people and their well-being, it’s important to consider someone’s holistic identity and particular situation, as well as their exposure to oppressive systems.
Take stock and address your stress
Still, Dr. Debar says there are always opportunities to get more strategic about how you handle stress.
The first step was awareness. Now that you understand the basics of the demand-response cycle, consider how stress shows up in your own life:
- How do you typically handle stress?
- What do you feel like physically and emotionally when you’re overwhelmed?
- Does stress show up in your sleeping or eating habits?
Next, start mapping out your stressors.
“In other words,” Dr. Debar says, “What depletes you and what energizes you? Some things will be in both categories, like kids for example, and that’s OK.”
Then, consider where these stressors show up throughout your day and focus on small, manageable opportunities to take care of yourself. This increases awareness so that you are “not your thoughts” and so have more choice on how to react in the moment.
“Aim for very short interventions, we’re talking 1 to 2 minutes,” says Dr. Debar.
You may, for example, notice that checking your phone first thing in the morning makes you anxious. Instead, try sleeping with your phone in a different room or taking a moment to greet a loved one when you wake up. The trick is focusing on what you can control — and build on small moments to create “micro pockets” of connection or relaxation, Dr. Debar says.
Beyond just the individual level, community-level resources also can boost resiliency. For example, for the LGBT community, community centers, affirming laws and policies, and access to affirming health services may help facilitate empowerment and successful stress management. You may choose to tap into a local resource, volunteer for a cause you care about or advocate for a positive change in your community.
No matter how you choose to address your stress, remember that stress is actually meant to protect you.
“So go easy on yourself,” says Dr. Debar. “Infuse a little compassion and remember your body is only doing its best.”
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