What Are The Potential Symptoms Of Stress?

Most individuals seem to experience stress somewhat regularly throughout their lives. Stress, a natural response from the body, may be beneficial in small amounts. It may help individuals avoid threats or be motivated to act. Unfortunately, high amounts of stress may be overwhelming and have a negative effect on an individual's life. It may affect their relationships, academic performance, and mental health. Excessive stress may also cause physical illnesses.

Stress relief appears to be possible for most individuals. Natural stress management may be the first option. Some individuals seem to try exercise, aromatherapy, and meditation as home remedies for stress. However, sometimes anti-stress medication may be necessary. Prescription stress pills appear to be common, though some natural supplements for anxiety and stress may be enough. In the end, though, individuals may want to understand the possible symptoms of stress first.

Frequent Illnesses

It seems that stress may cause frequent illnesses. This reaction may leave individuals vulnerable to viral and bacterial infections. Stress appears to impair the immune system, resulting in these effects. Normally, an individual's body should create antibodies to fight a potential illness or infection. However, stress seems to make this harder. This may be a reason why some vaccines are not as effective due to stress. It appears that stress may reactivate dormant viruses in the body, such as the herpes simplex virus. Thus, symptoms may reappear. Stress seems to make the immune system unable to control these viruses.

Some hormones may become imbalanced due to stress. Two examples appear to be cortisol and corticosterone, which should protect individuals. However, it seems that when these hormones are elevated for an extended period, an individual's body may not respond anymore. Thus, they may be vulnerable to inflammation and frequent illnesses. This may also increase their risk of chronic health conditions.

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Nausea

Many individuals appear to experience nausea due to stress. This symptom may occur during and after a stressful event. The reason seems to be due to the connections between the central nervous system and the gut. A network of neurotransmitters appears to regulate feelings in the abdomen, intestines, and stomach. This seems to influence nausea. One way may be by regulating ghrelin. This hormone may stimulate hunger as well as regulate an individual's mood.

This hormone may increase when an individual is stressed. Thus, the impact on their appetite and stomach may trigger nausea. In addition, patients may be at risk of anticipatory nausea. This illness seems to trigger nausea when individuals remember or think about stressful events. It appears to be more common when the stressful event already caused nausea or vomiting.

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Dizziness

Dizziness seems to be a common warning sign of stress. The reason may be due to related conditions. One such example appears to be post-traumatic stress disorder, which seems to trigger dizziness and vertigo quite often. Vestibular migraine may also result in dizziness. Stress appears to be a common trigger for this condition as well.

In addition, stress may cause anxiety. This seems to cause shallow breathing, which may limit oxygen in the blood. Thus, the brain may lack oxygen. Lightheadedness can occur as a result. Many types of stress seem to trigger dizziness. However, it may be the most common in emotional and mental stress.

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Irritability

In many cases, it seems that individuals dealing with stress experience irritability. This may appear before other symptoms, including fatigue, depression, anger, and mood swings. Researchers seem to have significant documents on the link between irritability and stress. First, it seems that stress may trigger inflammation due to the release of cytokines. Besides regulating inflammation, these molecules seem to influence an individual's mood. This appears to happen when they disrupt the natural circuitry between the patient's brain and nervous system.

Stress may also cause a significant rise in cortisol as well as other hormones. It seems that any hormone imbalance can trigger irritability. Unfortunately, this symptom appears to compromise an individual's relationships and overall quality of life. This may also result in more severe symptoms when patients deal with chronic conditions as well.

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Anxiety And Depression

Anxiety and depression appear to be common symptoms of both short-term and chronic stress. This may occur for several reasons. The first appears to be related to oxidative stress. This condition involves an imbalance between free radicals and antioxidants, which may cause DNA damage, among other forms of damage. This damage may cause chronic conditions, including diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. It also seems that emotional and mental stress can trigger oxidative stress in the patient's brain. When this happens, anxiety and depression may be the result. Brain tissue appears to be quite susceptible to oxidative stress.

Psychological stress seems to cause oxidative stress through high cortisol. However, oxidative stress may not be the only reason for anxiety and depression as symptoms of stress. High cortisol also appears to cause a decrease in serotonin. Low serotonin may be the most common cause of depression and anxiety.