Stress is a natural occurrence in the body. Everyone has experienced some level of it at some point in his or her lives. It is a feeling that often occurs when you are overloaded with too much to do and are struggling to cope with life, but it also acts as a natural defense, a motivator and adrenalin supporter. A little bit of stress now and then is not detrimental to your health, and may even be healthy for your body to experience, but chronic, prolonged stress can be very harmful to a person’s mental and physical health. There are some classic stress symptoms to be aware of; then you just need to know how to deal with them.

Headaches

A headache from stress can also be called a tension headache. With this kind of a headache, you will feel a dull, aching kind of pain located across the forehead, on the sides of your head and temples, and at the back of your head. This pain can also feel like a tightening or constant pressure in these particular areas. As well as the pain, you may feel tenderness in the muscles in the neck and shoulders as well as a bit of scalp pain. A simple head massage can do wonders for a stress headache, but it does not relieve the root of the problem, the stress.

Insomnia

Insomnia is the inability to sleep. If you have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep, this can be considered insomnia. Stress causes something called hyperarousal, which can affect the good balance between sleep and wakefulness. With insomnia, you may not only have trouble getting to sleep, and stay asleep, but you often wake up too early and not feel rested. You will feel tired in the daytime and have a feeling of sleepiness. This can affect your day-to-day activities as you may have difficulty paying attention or focusing on tasks, it can lead to irritability and anxiety, even depression. Mostly you will be worrying about all the sleep you are not getting, which leads to more stress.

High blood pressure

Stress and stressful situations can cause your blood pressure to spike. These spikes can be temporary, but it could be that the constant temporary spikes, could lead to long-term high blood pressure. To reduce stress and high blood pressure, it is recommended to exercise three to five times a week. This will help make a difference to your blood pressure in the long term and improve your health. It is suggested that it is not only stress that causes high blood pressure but the combination of stress and other lifestyle factors associated with stress, overwork, overheating, unhealthy diet, alcohol and poor sleeping habits.

Neck and back pain

Long-term stress can have an effect on your health. Neck and back pain is a common symptom of stress and stress-related activities. Whether it is from work pressure, stress at home, financial issues, or health problems, stress can typically show in our bodies in the form of muscle tension and pain. To combat these issues, you can make sure you get some exercise and stretch to loosen up the muscles, make a change in your diet to a more healthy food and drink life, try to relax and practice meditation, or mindfulness, and get regular check-ups at the doctor.

Shortness of breath

Stress can cause a shortness of breath, and one you begin to experience this, it can lead to a sense of nervousness, and you may become anxious. This can then make your shortness of breath feel worse, so it works as a catch 22. When you are anxious, the muscles that help you breathe; tighten, which makes you breathe faster. This is hard work and makes you tired, which means it is even harder to breathe, which can cause panic. It is very important to learn to relax when shortness of breath happens. Breathing exercises can help greatly as well as the ability to stop what you are doing and taking a moment to concentrate on yourself.

Irritability

It is very common to feel irritable, or in a bad mood when you are stressed. Linked with anxiety, irritability can cause you to become easily upset or angry, especially if things aren’t going your way, you have less tolerance. You can feel irritability because people are too close to you, physically, and emotionally and it can cause you to feel negative emotions and drains you of mental energy. Irritability is often something that comes out quickly and before you know it you have snapped at someone or lost your temper or be easily disappointed in someone or something.

Gastrointestinal problems

Most people think of stress manifests in the body as headaches and mood swings. It also plays a very important role in the health of the gut and gastrointestinal issues. The gut is extremely susceptible to chronic and acute stress, this, in turn, upsets the digestive system and can be damaging to your health. A healthy lifestyle can attribute to relieving many stress factors and the way we consume and digest food is one of them.

Fatigue

When dealing with chronic stress, you are likely to feel continually fatigued. This can be linked to insomnia and exhaustion. Generally, people can still feel fatigued, even if they get a good night’s sleep. Stress-related fatigue is not only being tired or drowsy but also an overall feeling of lack of motivation and a loss of energy. This can tend to make you feel heavy and exhausted. This can bring about headaches and muscle strain and tension, dizziness, and blurred vision slowed relaxes and lack of concentration.

Menstrual irregularities

Being stressed can affect a woman’s menstrual cycle. Often a period may be missed, or skipped. This is because stress plays a key role in how the hormones in the body function. Stress can suppress the hypothalamus gland, which controls the pituitary gland, which then controls the thyroid, adrenal glands, and ovaries. It is a connected web that is easily affected by the stresses of life and health. At times your period may even stop altogether, this is known as amenorrhea.

Tearfulness

Tearfulness is a sideline symptom of being stressed because it can come from the feeling of being completely emotionally exhausted. This is an abnormal pressure that has come from the physical and mental strain. You may tend to cry at simple things, things that would not have had the same effect on you. Crying is a very useful tool as it can act as a release of pent-up emotions and energy. If you are crying more often than usual, it could be a sign of stress and even depression.