How does your body respond to stress?

Mindfulness hypnosis can help you manage how your body responds to stress. There is more that is going on than just tight shoulders and a sore neck.sore neck. In addition to the myriad of physical responses, there are mental and emotional consequences to stress overload as well. When you are experiencing the “fight or flight” response, you are in a stress trance. Self hypnosis is all about taking control of the trance you are in. Learn hypnosis to be in control of how you manage stress.

How Does the Body Respond to Stress?

Scientist Hans Selye –”the father of stress research” developed the theory that stress is a major cause of disease because chronic stress causes long term chemical changes. He noted that the cause of stress made no difference whether it was chemical, physical or emotional, the body’s response was the same. The way your body handles stress is the “fight or flight” response which helps the body deal with stress very quickly.

This is the good part because when the saber tooth tiger is chasing you, you have the energy to try to get away. The bad news is when stress is more chronic (living in a stress filled environment) there are chemical changes that happen in your body that begin to cause chemical and neurological changes in the body. Dr. Selye termed this the GENERAL ADAPTATION SYNDROME. There are three stages to GAS:

ALARM STAGE – Your first reaction to stress recognizes there’s a danger and prepares to deal with the threat, a.k.a. the fight or flight response. Activation of the HPA axis (the hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal glands), the sympathetic nervous system, and the adrenal glands themselves takes place.

During this phase the main stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline are released to provide instant energy. If this energy is not repeatedly used by physical activity, it can become harmful. Increased adrenaline results in a surge of blood pressure that can damage blood vessels of the heart and brain – a risk factor in heart attack and stroke. Excess cortisol can cause damage to cells and muscle tissue.

RESISTANCE STAGE – If stress goes away, your body returns to normal. If not, your body now has reduced defenses and adaptive energy left. Problems begin when you find yourself repeating this process too often. So raising kids, paying the bills, dealing with a difficult co-worker, the septic system backs up ,etc., etc., etc. is when we enter the final stage.

EXHAUSTION PHASE – At this point, the stress has continued for some time. Your body’s ability to resist is lost because its adaptation energy supply is gone. Often referred to as overload, burned out, adrenal fatigue, maladaptation or dysfunction – HERE IS WHERE STRESS LEVELS GO UP AND STAY UP!

Here is a breakdown of what happens. Chronic stress – (nutritional, structural, psychological, toxins, allergies-sensitivities, electromagnetic) leads to:

Your cortisol levels go up and your DHEA levels go down which leads to a decreased glucose utilization and increased sugar craving (which leads to insulin insensitivity – diabetes), which leads to an inadequate diet, decreased collagen synthesis (arthritis), increased protein breakdown (weak muscles), decreased secretory IGA and increased circulating IGE (increased allergy reactions), liver toxicity, colon inflammation and joint pain. This all leads to nervous system irritation and increased inflammation in joints and throughout the body. Why is this important? Because stress, toxicity and inflammation are the primary causes of almost every disease process in the body.

Read How Does the Body Respond to Stress?

You can learn mindfulness hypnosis and be in control of the trance that you are in. As I keep saying, all of the stress reduction techniques in the world will not slow down the earth’s revolutions so there will still be stressors in your life. With self hypnosis you can be in control of how you respond to those stressors so that you flow with life easily and effortlessly.

Check out Seattle hypnosis and Bainbridge Island hypnosis.
Call (206) 903-1232 or email for your free consultation.

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