Signs of Stress
At some point during the pandemic, I realized that I was starting to wonder why I even bothered at all. Why did I get dressed every morning? Why did I shower? Put on a little makeup? Brush my hair? We were in lockdown at that point, and the weeks were starting to blur together without any variation other than what we devised within our own home. There was no connecting with friends outside of phone conversations or Zoom meetings. No dinners or date nights with my husband at the movie theater. No breaks from our kids! This “mood” would creep up on me repeatedly over the course of the next two years. I slowly learned to recognize the signs that told me I was slipping under, signs along the road that announced I was under too much stress.
For me, those signs included putting less effort into my own hygiene or cleanliness, wearing the same thing day after day (or, I have to confess, not getting out of my pajamas at all), a general sense of floating above everything like a disconnected cloud, a lack of motivation or interest in anything, and an increased desire to sleep. It wasn’t depression. I’d been depressed before. I knew what that felt like. This was different. Eventually I got intentional about combating these dips. I scheduled more meaningful conversations into my week. I made it a point to listen to podcasts or watch movies that made me laugh, and I forced myself to take my vitamins even if I didn’t feel like it.
Too much stress can manifest in multiple ways in our lives. We actually need stress to have something to push against but it’s about hitting the sweet spot. No stress is dull and boring. Too much stress is overwhelming and exhausting. Increased levels of stress have been linked to disrupted sleep, decreased energy levels, headaches, digestive issues, appetite changes, and a compromised immune system. It turns out that when we’re majorly stressed, our bodies are less capable of healing themselves or fighting off infection and disease. They’re too busy coping with the stress! Even acne has been linked to stress. Some studies have found a connection between higher levels of stress and increased bouts of acne, perhaps partially due to the fact that when stressed we tend to touch our faces more.
So how can we cope if we start to recognize the signs of stress piling up? Here are a few ideas that have been life savers for me.
Do something, anything, that makes you laugh. Watch silly cat videos on Youtube. Listen to a comedian online. Play a ridiculous game as a family (like the family friendly version of Cards Against Humanity).
Go for a walk or a drive. Shake yourself out of your routine. Get some fresh air.
Drink a glass of water. Add fresh lemon juice to it if you can. Caring for your body is an active way of not letting stress take over, and it’s easy to accidentally become dehydrated when distracted by stress.
Reach out to a friend and see when they can talk. Plan for meaningful connections, don’t just wait and hope that they happen.
Challenges/Points:
We actually need stress but the key is to have an amount that we can manage.
Signs of too much stress include trouble sleeping, low energy, headaches, or appetite changes.
To help make stress more manageable, introduce laughter, games, walks, or meaningful conversations into your days.
Questions:
How has your stress level been as you dealt with the restrictions from the pandemic?
Do you have any go-to coping mechanisms for stress?
What are your own signs that you’re experiencing too much stress in life?
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