Stress and its Damaging Effects

We’ve all had those days that start off with a missing shoe, a work deadline, a sick spouse or child, or no idea of what to cook for dinner, etc.  All that in one day and it’s amazing that we haven’t all pulled out our hair. In today’s world there is so much to do and not enough time to do it. When we run around in the so called “rat race” of life, we tend to always have levels of high stress.

Stress isn’t just seen in us adults anymore but is also starting to affect our children. Homework loads, sports activities, musical interests, and social engagements are just some of the many things today’s children face and tend to stress them out.

So just how is stress affecting the minds and bodies of ourselves and our children? First, take into account that stress negatively affects the spine. Stress causes the muscles in the back and neck to tense, which can cause the vertebrae in the spine to shift, creating misalignments or nerve interference. This in turn may result in symptoms that can be mistaken for common illnesses. For instance, nerve interference in the neck may result in a stuffed up or runny nose. Similar misalignments in the middle back may cause difficulty with digestion and elimination. Stress can also create its own physical issues including: inflammation, high cortisol levels leading to weight gain, sleep interference (which results in its own problems), metabolic disorders, gastrointestinal distress and more.

When these misalignments and nerve interference occur within our nervous system, our body will start to use it’s energy level ineffectively. It does this by using its energy much faster than a normal rate. This rapid use of or energy levels puts our bodies into survival mode. Once in survival mode our bodies tend to weaken, causing more illness, less sleeping, and more stress and anxiety that we are not getting things done. This only leads to a vicious cycle of more and more stress, causing a downward spiral of our health and mental well being.

So how can we break the stress cycle and ensure a healthier less stressful way of life for our family? Chiropractic care, massage therapy, meditation and exercise are a few ways that we can help decrease the effects of stress on our bodies. Specific chiropractic adjustments gradually restore the neurological connections in your body. By ridding the body of misalignments our nervous system starts to heal, decreasing muscle tension, increasing immune function and decreasing cortisol levels. Massage therapy also helps lower cortisol levels and decrease muscle tension helping the body and mind relax. Meditation can be as simple as taking 5 minutes out of your day to focus on a few things that you are grateful for, when we focus on things that make us happy, we tend to forget the crazy events of the day that have worn us out. Last but not least, exercise, whether it’s yoga, running or just getting outside to play with the kids, can increase endorphins which make you feel good.

Everyone is different and stress affects everyone differently. For some the best way to relieve stress is to shut out the world and find your peace; and for others the presence of family, friends and loved ones is the answer. Whatever the cause of your stress there is a way to diffuse it. The doctors at Active Family Chiropractic and Wellness recognize the importance of having a stress-free, joy-filled life, perhaps more importantly, they understand the damage that can be caused by stress. When stress is at its peak in your life, or your children’s lives that’s when regular adjustments, massage therapy, meditation and exercise may be the most beneficial. So be sure to make yours and your family’s health a priority.

~ Dr. Ali