Stress and health: what happens in your body and what helps

What is stress?

The World Health Organization describes stress as a state of worry or mental tension caused by a difficult situation. It's a natural response that helps us deal with challenges and threats in life. Everyone feels stressed from time to time.

What makes the difference is how long it lasts and how heavily it weighs on you. A work deadline that passes in a week is one thing; months of worrying about money, a loved one's health or an uncertain job are another.

What happens in your body when you're stressed?

When the brain senses a threat, the body releases stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Within seconds:

• your heart beats faster and blood pressure rises;
• your breathing speeds up;
• your muscles tense;
• more sugar is released into the blood for quick energy;
• digestion slows down, because it isn't a priority right now.

This response is very useful in the short term. It helps you brake in time, speak in front of a room or finish a project. Once the situation is over, your body goes back to normal.

How can you tell stress has become too much?

The UK's National Health Service (NHS) lists the most common signs. They often build up gradually, so many people don't connect them with stress:

• in your body: headaches, tense muscles, an upset stomach, tiredness, poor sleep;
• in your mind: worries that won't stop, trouble concentrating, feeling you can't cope;
• in what you do: irritability, pulling away from people, more coffee, alcohol or sweets, less movement.

A short journal helps you see the link. If you sleep worse, eat differently and move less in the hard weeks, that's simply how the body reacts to stress, for almost everyone.

How does stress affect sleep, meals and movement?

Area	What happens	What you can try
Sleep	you struggle to fall asleep, wake up at night with thoughts	write your worries on paper before bed; a fixed wake-up time
Meals	cravings for sweets and snacks or, the opposite, no appetite	regular meal times; snacks prepared in advance
Movement	it's the first thing you drop when you're busy	10 minutes of walking, even on hard days
Energy	tiredness, even after resting	short breaks during the day, getting outside in daylight

They're all connected. Poor sleep raises the next day's stress, and stress spoils sleep. That's why one small step in a single area, such as a daily walk, can help the others too.

In your free MentorSano account, the daily journal shows how your sleep, energy and movement change from week to week, and the daily lesson briefly explains why you feel the way you do.

What helps you manage stress day to day?

The WHO put together a simple guide, “Doing What Matters in Times of Stress”, with techniques anyone can use. Here are some of them, together with NHS advice:

• A daily routine. Regular times for waking up, eating and going to bed give your body a steady rhythm when everything around you feels chaotic.
• Movement. Any kind of activity eases tension in the body and helps you sleep.
• People close to you. Talking to someone you trust takes a lot of the weight off.
• The present, not the future. When your thoughts race towards what might go wrong, bring your attention back to what you can see, hear and feel right now, for a few breaths.
• One thing at a time. Write down what you have to do, break it into small steps and do the first one.
• Less news and screen time, especially in the evening.
• Watch what you use as a crutch: alcohol, smoking and eating on the go seem to help in the moment, but they increase stress in the long run.

What can stress teach you about yourself?

Stress usually shows what matters to you and where you need support. Look at the situations that stress you most often: are they about time, people, money, health? Some can't be changed, but how you prepare for them can. Learning how your body reacts is the first step to no longer being caught off guard by it.