Stress is prevalent. While it is impossible to eliminate all stressors from your life, it is feasible to manage stress and keep yourself healthy. This is significant since stress can lead to mental exhaustion, irritability, and insomnia.
In some ways, stress is a two-edged sword. Sometimes, it is the very thing that propels us to act quickly and decisively. Sometimes it’s the boulder that makes us feel helpless, causing all movement to come to a halt.
Even if you are aware of the physical impacts of stress, you may be unaware of the several stages of stress, referred to as general adaption syndrome (GAS). It is simpler to spot indicators of chronic stress in oneself when you understand the many stages of stress and how the body responds to these stages.
Stage 1-Fight or Flight
Your body will alert you the instant you begin to feel worried, and it raises the alarm and increases activity in the thyroid and adrenal glands. When you hear about entrepreneurs “burning out,” this is what you get. Their adrenal glands go into overdrive because the fire alarm goes off, yet they’re still working in their office.
When you ignore these warnings, other things begin to happen within your body. In response, stress hormones, heart rate, blood pressure, and even short-term memory are affected, along with anxiety, fear, and worry.
The flip side of this is that your mental focus tends to rise during the alarm stage. Not for long, but at first. This stage aims to fix an immediate problem before returning levels to normal. So, utilize it to your advantage, but always remember to return it.
Stage 2-Damage Control
When your body is stressed, it lets you know.
What occurs next is that it tries to maintain as much normalcy as possible while your body works overtime. To manage the inflammation, anti-inflammatory hormones (cortisol) are released. This, however, is not a long-term answer, and it’s a short workaround to keep things going while problems are resolved.
Again, entrepreneurs are legendary for being aware that these bells are sounding yet proceeding despite. We commend the behavior, and just keep in mind that you’re playing with fire and every train eventually crashes.
Stage 3-Recovery
At some point, you’ve probably realized you’ve been running a marathon at a sprint speed and decided it’s time to slow down.
When you start to recover, your body does everything it can to restore your internal systems to their original, healthy state. However, to recuperate, you must rest, sleep, and lower total output—all of which are extremely tough for entrepreneurs.
This is why, no matter how busy you are, you must build “time to relax” into your daily and weekly routine. Allow yourself time to do nothing.
Stage 4-Adaption
Let’s just say, you didn’t listen to your body and didn’t take the time to heal. Instead, you’ve opted to “adapt.”
In essence, you’re telling your body that this amount of stress isn’t going away anytime soon. So, what exactly does it do? It settles into a state of continual stress and responds accordingly. However, this does not always imply that it adapts positively.
You’ll begin to experience symptoms ranging from low energy to a lack of self-esteem. You won’t sleep as well, you may gain (or lose) a lot of weight, and you’ll be significantly less likely to control your emotions. Take it a step further (think “workaholic”), and every pillar in your life will begin to sway—until it eventually collapses. Adaptation does not constitute a “solution.” It’s an undesirable outcome that you should try to prevent at all costs.
Stage 5-Burnout
Finally, if you disregard the first four levels of warning, you will soon find yourself entirely “burned out.” This could range from full-fledged depression to hospitalization.
Incredibly, problems like lack of sleep and continuous grinding are lauded as achievements that demonstrate your dedication to the process in the business world. I, for one, talk a lot about the effort required to be successful. But I also know that if it isn’t balanced, the short-term gain will turn into a loss in the long run.
You are your most valuable asset. You will suffer if you do not maintain your equilibrium (mentally, physically, emotionally). Don’t allow yourself to become burnt out, and you’ll wind up spending a lot more time getting yourself back to a healthy state than you would if you just did a little bit every day to keep it from happening in the first place.
Book an appointment now to answer all your queries. You can book an appointment with the top Psychiatrists in Karachi through Marham by calling Marham helpline: 0311-1222398 or by online booking facility through the website or Marham mobile app.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
1- What is psychological stress?
A unique interaction between a person and their surroundings is perceived as straining or beyond their resources and harming their well-being.
2- What is the stress level?
Stress is described as a state of mental or emotional tension brought on by adversity. Most people experience stress at some point in their lives.
3- Which hormone is released when you are stressed?
Cortisol, the main stress hormone, raises blood sugar levels, improves brain glucose use, and increases the availability of tissue repair components. Aside from these roles, cortisol suppresses non-essential or harmful functions.
