Stress can affect you in four different ways:
The Physical Effects of Stress
These result in a physically perceived overload. These are present in many forms. One of
first areas to consider is chemical burden from our modern and affluent lifestyle. Pesticides, fertilisers, additives, sprays and other chemicals which we constantly contact initiate stress reactions within our bodies.
In excellent book "Allergy Overload", Stephen Griffiths alerts us to 5,000 allowable food additives; some of which we will ingest daily. Bluntly stated, they slowly poison us. The ingestion of allergenic foods is highly stressful. Most people are considered intolerant to something, detrimental effects of tea, coffee and alcohol. In addition to being nutritionally valueless, these beverages create a direct physical stress on internal organs responsible for detoxifying them (mainly liver) and further unbalance our emotional state because they are stimulating drugs.
There can be physical stress from over exertion as in case of unfit people attempting stressful exercise, or athletes pushing to achieve goals well beyond intended capacity of their bodies. Some people feel driven by a fanatical desire to exercise and often end up exhausted and totally depleted.
Consider also, people who work long hours or shift-hours where natural rhythm of bodily function and internal energy exchanges are either inhibited or thrown out of balance. The proverbial 'workaholic' very often suffers, primarily from physical exhaustion caused by deep - rooted psychological origins.
The Emotional Effects of Stress
Create tension and irritability which is very often manifested as disease and illness as ways of dealing with emotions that cannot be expressed. When a person finds themselves in a circumstance which they feel is beyond their control and with seemingly no resolve, they will often subconsciously transfer their feelings to physical, as its form of expression.
A common example here is headache, and a common cause of headache is feeling of hopelessness that results from being locked into a particular role or circumstance. Of course, more organic causes of headache could include eyestrain, constipation or neck problems and these areas would need to be investigated too. However, no amount of physical therapy will solve problem if there is a strong emotional "cause" behind it.
A further example of way that we use disease would be stomach aches in children. This can be a very effective means of gaining parental attention by a child who feels that a new member of family is getting more than their fair share of attention.
Skin problems usually have an identifiable emotional basis. An irritating skin complaint can often be result of irritating life circumstances or an irritating person that one would rather not be involved with. It might be irritation with one's job.
If such stresses are not dealt within right way at emotional level, they will most likely manifest as an irritating rash or similar condition until problem is resolved. Another example is constipation. If chronic cases do not respond to physical priorities of more water and fibre in diet, cause may be retention in mind for example holding on tenaciously to old ideas or relationships that no longer serve our best interests. These mental retentions can manifest as physical retention of rubbish that we would best be well rid of.
Do note at this point that a seemingly identical emotional problem may manifest as a particular physical disease in one person and yet as a completely different disease in another person. There is no hard and fast rule of "one stress, one disease".
The Mental Effects of Stress
These impair logical thinking and can occur for many reasons. There may be a conflict at work or at home; worry about ones appearance or abilities or relationships, children, career or finances. Indeed anything.
A problem which does not bear a second thought for one person, may be a catastrophe for another. These stresses and conflicts are very real for those who are experiencing them. In this sense, stress is highly subjective and here in lies a major key to correcting it. To change ones thinking about a problem is often enough to correct that problem.
The very existence of worrying stress is confirmation that better ways of approaching and handling situation need to be found. Stressful problems must be rectified or they will make us miserable emotionally and will very likely manifest physically. The vehicles for this physical manifestation being our nervous and endocrine systems, which form link between thought and physical. Suppressed emotions result in physical disease as well as mental disease. Two of more common conditions which are easily related to stress are ulcers and hypochlorhydria. These are often direct result of emotional and physical stress.
