Understanding stress
What is stress?
Stress is a natural form of tension that comes with life. It is a physiological response that enables us to react to challenging situations. Stress can arise from physical, mental, or emotional demands — such as a deadline at work, financial worries, relationship difficulties, or the loss of a loved one. In response, the body releases stress hormones that make us more alert and prepared to act quickly.
We all experience stressful events from time to time. In doing so, it is important to distinguish between healthy stress, which we can manage and which motivates us and helps us move forward, and unhealthy stress, which negatively affects our well-being and functioning – especially when stressors persist for too long or become overwhelming.
When stress becomes chronic or overwhelming, it can lead to serious mental and physical health problems. Recognizing the early signs of stress and overload is essential so you can take timely steps to reduce the pressure and restore balance in your life.
Healthy vs unhealthy stress
Stress is not necessarily harmful. In fact, a certain level of tension can enhance our performance and wellbeing. This is healthy stress, or positive stress. It is a short-lived form of activation that helps you perform at your best — such as the tension you feel before a job interview, an exam, a presentation, or another meaningful event. Once the situation passes, your body naturally returns to a calm and balanced state.
Healthy stress is a normal part of life. It helps you stay alert, focused, motivated, and can stimulate creativity, growth, and personal development. The key is finding and maintaining a balance between healthy stress and relaxation so you can function well in your daily life.
Stress becomes unhealthy when it feels unpleasant, overwhelming, or persistent. Stress is unhealthy when it lasts too long, occurs too frequently, or becomes too intense — especially when there isn't enough time or space for rest and relaxation. This type of stress can arise from many sources, such as high workload, work-related issues, family tensions, major setbacks, or emotionally challenging events.
Unhealthy stress can significantly affect your physical, emotional, and mental health. Because prolonged or intense stress can lead to serious health problems, it is essential to manage stress effectively. By recognizing the signs of unhealthy stress, you can take steps to reduce its impact and improve your overall wellbeing.
Chronic stress
Chronic stress occurs when the balance between your stressors (what is demanded of you) and coping capacity (what you can handle) is disrupted for an extended period. If no timely action is taken, temporary stress symptoms can develop into chronic issues such as: such as burnout, chronic fatigue, tension symptoms, anxiety, nervousness and depression, gastrointestinal problems, and neck and shoulder pain.
By recognizing stress symptoms early and dealing with them in a healthy way, you can prevent stress exhaustion and burnout. It is important to take these symptoms seriously and seek professional help if needed. Give yourself the time and space to recover, and to rebuild a healthy balance in your life.
Do you have questions or would you like support in addressing your stress, exhaustion, or burnout? Feel free to reach out for an introductory session.
Causes and symptoms of stress
Causes of stress
Stress is the body’s natural response to pressure or challenging situations. It can stem from external factors such as work, relationships, or life events, as well as internal factors like personality traits, beliefs, and coping style. These influences often interact and reinforce one another.
At its core, unhealthy stress happens when your stressors outweigh your coping capacity — when the demands on you exceeds what you can handle at that moment.
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Stressors
Stressors refers to the total amount of pressure and demands you experience in daily life. These demands can sometimes become overwhelming. They stem from factors outside yourself — situational causes — often referred to as stress-inducing circumstances. This includes work, school and life pressures, social obligations, family responsibilities, financial worries, and personal challenges.
The causes of stress can range from everyday challenges to chronically stressful conditions and major life events. Often, these stressors interact and reinforce each other. For example, a major event in your personal life may leave you with less energy for work, or you may handle your work effectively until one of your children becomes ill.
Some common causes of an excessive load include:
High workload, demanding tasks, and/or long working hours
Lack of autonomy or control over work
Unclear expectations and goals
Lack of job satisfaction, fulfillment or recognition
Insufficient support in the workplace
Conflicts with colleagues or managers
Work-life imbalance
Relationship difficulties, family tensions, or challenges with parenting
Family matters, such as family conflicts or caring for an ill family member
Limited social support
Grief and loss, such as the death of a loved one, divorce, or other forms of loss
Health problems
Financial worries
Unprocessed trauma or traumatic experiences
On their own, these situations rarely cause major problems. Difficulties typicallyarise when they accumulate — for example, work pressure combined with relationship challenges and health issues. At that point, the total load can become overwhelming, requiring strong resilience and coping capacity to stay balanced.
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Coping capacity
Coping capacity refers to your ability to handle multiple stressors in a balanced way. It includes physical, emotional, and mental aspects, such as resilience, coping skills, health, sufficient time for rest and relaxation, and support from others.
People differ in how sensitive they are to stress. Some see deadlines, organizing events, or raising children as positive challenges, while others experience these situations as sources of stress and tension. The situation alone does not determine whether stress symptoms arise; equally important is how you respond to and manage these challenges.
Certain personality traits and characteristics can increase sensitivity to stress and reduce coping capacity, including:
Perfectionism and high self-expectations
Ambition, high achievement orientation, and a strong competitive drive
Being constantly in a hurry, unable to relax or do "nothing", or the tendency to do multiple things at once
High self-demands, and a strong sense of “must-do” obligations
A strong sense of responsibility for tasks, work, or family
High dedication and commitment to work or family responsibilities
Seeking approval, validation, or recognition from others
Difficulty saying "no", setting boundaries, or standing up for yourself
Limited social support or difficulty asking for help
Juggling too many tasks or responsibilities, often at your own expense
Not taking enough time for relaxation and recovery.
Insufficient self-care
Feeling little influence over your environment or your own life.
These personal traits and factors often interact and reinforce each other. It is important to understand your own stress-sensitive patterns, develop effective coping strategies, and strengthen your resilience and coping capacity. By doing so, you can prevent stress overload, exhaustion and burnout.
Symptoms of stress
Stress can show up in a variety of physical, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral ways. Initially, stress often produces everyday, mild symptoms, which can vary from person to person. For example, one person may experience headaches, another may have trouble sleeping, and a third may feel constantly rushed.
If the stress persists over time and you do not have time to recover, its effects can expand and impact multiple areas of life. See below an overview of the most common symptoms associated with stress.
Physical symptoms
Headache: Stress can trigger tension headaches or migraines.
Muscle pain: Tense muscles, as well as neck and back pain, are common stress symptoms.
Fatigue: Excessive stress can lead to feelings of exhaustion and tiredness.
Stomach problems: Stress can cause digestive problems such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
Palpitations: A faster heart rate and elevated blood pressure are common responses to acute stress.
Sweating: Excessive sweating, especially in the hands and armpits, can be a sign of stress.
Dizziness: Stress can cause lightheadedness, dizziness, or balance problems.
Breathing problems: Rapid or shallow breathing, or feeling like you can't get enough air.
Emotional symptoms
Anxiety: A persistent sense of worry, nervousness, or fear.
Irritability: You may feel easily annoyed and experience difficulty interacting with others.
Depression: Prolonged stress can lead to depressive feelings, such as sadness, hopelessness, and lossof interest in activities.
Heightened emotionality: Experiencing mood swings, crying spells, or unexplained anger.
Restlessness: Feeling a sense of agitation and tension, unable to relax, feeling constantly on edge.
Cognitive symptoms
Concentration difficulties: Struggling to focus, make decisions, or think clearly.
Forgetfulness: Forgetting simple things or events.
Worrying: Repeated worries, thoughts, or images that are difficult to control.
Negative thinking: A pessimistic outlook on the future and difficulty finding positive perspectives.
Behavioral symptoms
Changes in appetite: Either loss of appetite or eating more than usual.
Sleep problems: Insomnia, difficulty falling asleep, waking frequently during the night, or waking too early.
Increased use of alcohol or drugs: Some people turn to alcohol, tobacco, or drugs to cope with stress.
Social withdrawal: Avoiding social contacts or activities that were previously enjoyable.
Do you recognize many of these symptoms? Take them seriously!
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