Stress is a part of life. I mean that literally. Stress is simply the response of the mind and body to change in the environment; since the environment changes regularly, stress is a fundamental part of life. How we deal with stress makes all the difference between having a healthy life and destroying ourselves.
In the short-term, stress is viewed by many as a challenge, as a good thing. This is a healthy choice, the sign of a positive attitude. While a person might feel typical symptoms (headache, stiff neck and shoulders, nausea, rapid breathing and heartbeat, sweating and sweaty palms), this goes away after a few minutes or a couple hours if the stressor is a specific event. This is the famous “fight or flight” response. Coping with this type of stressor is as simple as talking with friends over a meal or in the park, meditating, or getting some physical exercise like going for a walk or bike ride. When the stressor is specific and short-term, the fix is simple.
What happens, though, when the stressors of life are felt for long periods of time, especially when the stress is significant to begin with? The normal stress response is much more damaging when stress is prolonged, causing severe psychological and physiological damage and even death.
The phases experienced with long-term stress are predictable and are called the “General Adaptation Syndrome”. Initially, the “fight or flight” response occurs. Then, as the body adapts, the symptoms go away; the body learns to cope with the level of stress experienced and the stresses appear to be under control. This is where danger lies: because it appears the symptoms are gone, it is easy to believe we have learned to manage the stresses we are experiencing, but the truth is that the body is still undergoing strain and is just masking the damage being done. After prolonged coping, we hit a point where we cannot function any more, and suddenly the symptoms return, much stronger than before. This is the onset of burnout.
With burnout comes a whole new slew of problems: energy levels drop dramatically, we lose the ability to focus and concentrate, we get irritable and intolerant about everything in our lives. But it gets worse, because the damage is deeper than our attitude and our mind. The immune system begins to fail in many ways, leading to many colds and sickness and also to long-term health problems like heart disease and cancer (yes, there is much evidence to suggest these are both heavily influenced or even directly caused by stress). We become anxious or depressed, or both, and lose the ability to feel happiness.
Keep in mind, however, one important fact: burnout is not when the problems initiate, it’s just when they become apparent. By the time you get to burnout, much damage has already been done.
There is a silver lining to all this, however. All (or at least most) of the damage of even long-term stress is reversible. Eliminate the stress. How to do that is entirely dependent on what the stressors are, but everyone has the ability to eliminate stress from their lives if they really want to.
On a daily basis, take time for yourself: listen to music, dance, exercise, play with your children or with a pet, go shopping or socializing with friends, take up a creative hobby like writing or painting, meditate, go for a walk in the woods or on the coast… do things that put you in a good place emotionally and spiritually.
On a larger scale, take enough vacation time to truly escape the pressures of your regular environment; leave your email and phone behind, or you won’t escape those pressures (if you’re working, it doesn’t count as vacation). Get away from it all for enough time to unwind. Remember, you’re not trying to convince someone else you’ve been relaxing, you’re trying to actually relax; don’t kid yourself about it.
If life is truly too stressful, if you can’t get away even when you try, then it’s time to redesign your life. Perhaps a six month (or even several year) sabbatical is appropriate. Maybe it’s time to start an entirely new career. Figuring out if this is right for you is no easy task, as the change can be enormous if you choose to rebuild your life from the ground up, so seek the assistance of others in making this kind of choice; look for a life coach, counselor, psychologist, or mentor who you can trust to help you see the big picture objectively.
Take time for yourself and keep your priorities straight. Breathe. Eat well. Exercise. Most of all, be willing to admit two things: one, there’s more to life than your career; and two, we all have limitations. Choose to manage your life so that your life doesn’t manage you.
Resources:
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Healthy thoughts,
Jeff
