The Harmful Effects of Prolonged Stress

Stress is something that most of us experience so often that it starts to feel normal. But what are the actual effects of workplace stress, and why is it so important to slow down to take care of ourselves?

• Weakens your immune system, reducing the body’s ability to fight illness.
• Stress lowers white blood cell production, impairing the body’s defense against disease.
• Stress can trigger ulcers due to digestive upset caused by the stress response.
• Prolonged stress can damage and shrink key brain regions, like the hippocampus, which is vital for learning and memory.
• Ongoing cardiac stress contributes to plaque buildup in the arteries, increasing the risk of heart disease.

 Scariest Effect of All: Stress can accelerate the shortening of telomeres. Telomeres protect your cells and when they’re damaged it can lead to a shorter life expectancy. When you’re constantly flooded with stress hormones your telomeres shorten more quickly.

Don’t Worry, There’s Hope: You can take action to manage your stress and keep it in check. By doing so you can enhance your body’s and brain’s ability to heal and respond more effectively.

Simple Changes You Can Make:

• Breathe
• Hydrate
• Movement
• Play brain games
• Take a break
• Music
• Fresh air and live plants
• Aromatherapy
• Smile and laugh
• Keep close to your friends
• Get good quality sleep

Stress is a real threat to your health but there are real, practical and effective ways to combat the stress we all feel. Take some time, make some changes and get rid of some of that stress.

- Julie "Brain Lady" Anderson