HOW LONG-TERM STRESS CONTRIBUTES TO PAIN, INJURY AND DISEASE
Stress can negatively affect your body in more ways than you may think. A stressful, workaholic lifestyle that is frequently out of balance has many unforeseen consequences. We usually recognize this only when it dramatically confronts us. We may get a violent pain in our abdomen whenever we eat, or we may suddenly feel tired all the time when we normally have boundless energy.
Our wake-up call may be a massive heart attack, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), frequent migraine headaches or an incapacitating neck or back pain that makes it difficult to sleep, walk, sit or stand without pain. When continual high levels of stress erode the body’s strength and resiliency, our body begins to fall apart. Here is how it happens.
HOW STRESS AFFECTS THE BODY SYSTEMS
Digestive System
When you are facing a situation that is worrying, terrifying or infuriating to you, dissolving that noontime tuna on rye takes a back seat to dealing with those issues. Consequently, your saliva output diminishes (dry mouth), the contents of your stomach sit still instead of being processed (indigestion) and your colon either stops working altogether, or it squeezes much too hard and you end up with diarrhea or constipation.
Suddenly you are not digesting your food because of the stress you are experiencing Excessive stress makes it impossible for the body to properly digest the good food you eat.
Cardiovascular System
Stress reactions require major rerouting of blood throughout the body. This is largely controlled by the speed of the heart rate and the tightness or looseness of the various arteries. So the cardiovascular system is particularly sensitive to changes when we’re under stress, and it suffers when that stress is unnecessarily prolonged.
There are many stress-related disorders of the cardiovascular system, and many of these problems are closely interrelated. In other words, having one cardiovascular problem can greatly increase your risk of having others.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a situation where the arteries are chronically tight, rather than flexible and elastic. Having them tighten down increases the force with which blood moves through them, just as squeezing your thumb over a garden hose increases the force with which the water moves through it. Long-term consequences of untreated high blood pressure are very serious; arteries become prone to damage (arteriosclerosis), which will raise the risk of blood clots (thrombosis) and heart attacks or stroke.
All of these are life-threatening problems that can be prevented or ameliorated by taking action to reduce stress in you life. Regular massage and/or foot reflexology can contribute a great deal to lessening stress, while prolonging your life.
Musculoskeletal System
In an ongoing flight-or-flight-stress reaction, all of our muscles become habitually tight. We walk through life as if we are always on red alert. If this goes on long enough, we will actually begin to interpret this unnecessary tension as normal. This constant elevated state of physical tension is what massage and reflexology body workers refer to as chronic muscle tension, which is the muscular component of internalized stress. Before we know it, our knuckles are white as we grip the steering wheel, and it feels strange to just “do nothing” and relax. We may clench and grind our teeth all night long. We may walk around with our heads bent down and our shoulders raised up—an inefficient tense posture that opens the door to headaches, neck pain, backaches and serious injury. If someone suggests that we lift our heads, drop our shoulders, take a deep breath or take a rest, it feels unfamiliar and unnatural.
When our bodies become accustomed to living with one foot always on the gas pedal, we become vulnerable to a multitude of musculoskeletal problems, as well as, the digestive and cardiovascular diseases discussed above. Chronic pain syndromes, constant fatigue, difficulty with healing, even osteoporosis can all be connected to having extended periods with high levels of stress hormones in the blood.
Headaches, jaw pain, neck pain, backaches, difficulty sleeping, frequent cramps and muscle spasms are classic examples of how muscular tension can translate into incapacitating pain and fatigue. These problems can be caused by a multitude of factors, including chronically tense muscles.
Massage and reflexology are excellent ways of relaxing our bodies, minds, and muscles.
Immune System
A healthy immune system is a wonder of nature. Its agents constantly patrol the body looking for anything that doesn’t belong there. When it finds something, it tags it, attacks it and generally eats it. Finally, the immune system creates cells and chemical agents that will actually remember the invader, so that the next time you’re exposed to that same invader, it will be eradicated before you know it. There are not many pathogens (disease-causing agents) that can outlive a healthy functioning immune system.
The relationship between stress and immune function has been the subject of intense research. It is clear that long-term stress suppresses immune system activity, and makes us more vulnerable to pain, injury and disease. The culprit in this case is a familiar one: cortisol. The presence of cortisol in the blood has been shown to slow down white blood cell activity, and to inhibit the secretion of important immune system chemicals that help us to heal. Recent research has shown that regular massage therapy and/or reflexology lowers high levels of cortisol.
The fairly new science of psycho-neuro-immunology—that is, the relationship between the emotional state (psycho), the nervous system (neuro) and the immune system (immunology)—will probably reveal more that we ever thought possible in regards to the link between stress and immune system strength. One of the things researchers have already found is that some of the chemicals that carry messages between immune system cells are very similar to chemicals that carry messages in the brain. In other words, that feeling of “Oh, I think I’m getting sick,” or “I think my back is going to go into spasm” could actually be a chemical “conversation” between your body’s cells and your brain.
By now, you’ve probably realized that almost any disorder can be traced back to excessive stress. Research reveals that the negative impact of stress on our health can be long-term and cumulative. Becoming more proactive participants in keeping our bodies relaxed and healthy can have a substantial impact on the health and quality of our lives. Massage and reflexology are viable, proven options for health care and maintenance. Only we have the ability to arrange our lives so that we are not too busy to take care of our bodies and ourselves.
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