Stress and Anxiety
By: Javan
April 20, 2015

Life events trigger your brain to release certain chemicals. Your brain is capable of releasing seratonins, dopamines, and panic inducing chemicals. When there is a great deal of daily stress, like being a parent, working, dealing with loss, etc. the brain is constantly looking for ways to cope and adjust.  These are all normal parts of life. But life can be stressful which is common and normal. But understanding that stress is common or normal doesn’t undo the anxiety and stress. The body still takes a beating and responds. Do you recognize when you are feeling stress? Do you recognize your own anxiety? image

How do you feel when you are at peace versus when you are very busy? Do you know the difference?When the body is flooded with chemicals that say “oh no!” or “I am so angry, hurt, mad sad, etc…” the body is under stress. The ability to feel other important emotions become compromised. Instead, there is a more fear based, dominant emotion that sets up your reality based on the brain chemicals from the amigdella that says fight or flight! Reality becomes narrow or skewed due to the flood of chemicals. So are you really experiencing the reality around you in the moment? Or do you need to stop, wait for the flood of emotion to pass, and then re-examine?

Life events can have a similar effect on the brain when there is a great deal of daily stress, like being a parent, working, dealing with loss, etc. These are all normal parts of being an adult. But life can be stressful to anyone no matter how common. Knowing something is common doesn’t undo the anxiety and stress. The body still takes a beating and responds. How do you feel when you are at peace versus when you are very busy? Do you know the difference?

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Life can look and feel very different depending on how much stress and worry you carry within you on a daily basis. It’s not relevant whether anyone else thinks you should or shouldn’t feel stress. The importance lies in knowing that you do! Accept the times in your life when you worry, carry anxiety, or when you don’t. Notice the difference. The ability to see choices can change your life experience. It impacts your reality. Anxiety and stress are major factors that influence life. Stress feeds anxiety and vice versa.

Anxiety feeds the body with chemicals that say you are not safe or not getting what you need in a imagepanicky way. Anxiety can lead to withdrawal, anger, fighting, over reactions, or distancing. Therefore, fear is a creation within the mind, induced by chemicals, telling the heart and the body to react. Being able to determine what you could do or not do in a stressful moment is compromised because of the panicked state. The same happens under many days or months of prolonged stress. Whatever you decide to do or not do when feeling stressed is going to have an impact on your relationships. Doing nothing is also a choice. Allowing your body to go back to a state of rest from a state of panic, can help the brain to resume a stable state. Do you know how to handle stress and anxiety in your life?