Stress can be defined as a reaction to any type of stimulus that disturbs our mental or physical equilibrium. Basically, it is a part of life that is omnipresent. Stressful events can trigger our ‘flight or fight’ response. This causes hormones like cortisol and adrenaline to surge through our bodies. Tiny bits of stress – aka acute stress – can be quite exciting and serve to keep us alert and active. However, long-term stress – aka chronic stress – can actually be detrimental to our health.
Stress and Memory
It might not come as a surprise to learn that stress takes a toll on thinking. That being said, there has been new research that points to stress helping with your memory. That is, for recalling simple facts that have been memorized. This finding is based on thinking and memory tests that were taken by 19 different students and was conducted by researchers such as David Beversdorf MD, from Ohio State University, and others.
Stress can also have a negative effect on memory, and for that, there are supplements that you can take that will improve your overall memory. One such supplement is a nootropic called Lumonol, which may be able to help improve cognitive performance and mood.
Stress can have negative effects on our bodies and minds. It can result in things like hypertension and diabetes. These types of conditions feed off of things like stress and anxiety, which then become a component in a vicious cycle. However, if you can learn how to handle your stress, you will be able to sort of detox your mind from it.
It isn’t a secret that when people are stressed they can fly off the handle at the drop of a hat. That is one of the ways that stress can harm your health. However, new research shows that it only takes a small bit of stress for you to blow your top. This study, done in 2013, showed that even small amounts of stress can impair the ability we have to control our emotions.
Stress has its benefits too, though.
If you want to be able to fight off disease and infections, you need to have a healthy immune system. Did you know that stress can help with that? When a person gets sick, stress from being sick causes the body to release hormones that will battle whatever is threatening their health. This type of stress is truly effective in the beginning stages of being sick, when the body needs help the most.
It is also true that your immune system can take only so much though. If the stress lasts for a longer period of time, it can be overwhelming and become detrimental to the immune system.
In a Professional Setting
You might be of the opinion that your job causes your stress. That being said, employees who are successful will turn their stress into positive energy and a sort of motivation as opposed to being consumed by it. Have you ever noticed that on the days where you have the fewest deadlines, you get the least done? Having too little stress at work can lead you to complacency and can actually affect how much work you get done. When you attack hurdles at work and take risks, it will help your mental acuity and self – confidence. These are both things that can increase your marketability and opportunities for promotion. Manage your stress and you can have an advantage over our colleagues who let their stress manage them.
Use Your Stressors to Your Advantage
Stress can be both positive and negative. Don’t lose sight of the fact that too much of something is rarely a good thing – and that holds true with stress. Small bursts of stress can give you amazing benefits. However, it is never a good thing to be exposed to stress in the long term. This is essentially setting yourself up for physical and emotional illness. Learn to recognize the things or people in your life that are stressors and then use the energy that they produce to your advantage.