Many things can cause us stress in our daily lives.
On a large scale, world events are almost constant causes of stress. Politics, wars, natural disasters, and other issues are constantly seen in news headlines. Worse yet, it’s almost impossible to avoid seeing these news stories (unless you live completely off the grid).
On a smaller scale, life events can be very stressful too. Family dynamics, finances, and work considerations all cause us stress from one minute to the next.
Fortunately, there are ways to overcome stress and live a healthier life. One such method of reducing stress is to schedule regular treatment sessions with your chiropractor.
What Are the Signs of Stress?
Some people may not even realize how stressed they are. For these folks, it may seem like their mentally frazzled state is the result of a disease or just normal life. However, too much stress is not normal and it is not good for our mental or physical health.
Stress can manifest in different ways for everyone. For instance, some people might start to feel tightness in their neck and shoulders during stressful encounters. Others might notice that their heart rate and blood pressure rise whenever they are under stress. Alternatively, some people may feel like they have trouble focusing or their concentration might seem “fuzzy”.
We’ve all felt stressed at one point or another. To make the issue even more complicated, there are situations in which stress is actually a good thing!
Eustress vs. Distress
In fairly recent years, the concept of eustress has been examined by psychologists and researchers alike.
In simple terms, eustress is positive stress. It’s the type of stress an athlete might experience before and during a big competition. It provides a person with a sense of urgency and the focus necessary for completing an important task.
Furthermore, eustress can enable our bodies to produce hormones and chemicals that allow us to accomplish things that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to.
Distress, on the other hand, is the kind of stress that we typically think about. This is the stress that we experience when we’re worried about coming up with enough money to make rent next month. Or the type of stress we feel when there is a strange sound in our homes in the middle of the night. Too much of this type of stress can lead to devastating health consequences.
With all of that being said, how can we minimize our unhealthy reactions to “bad stress”?
What are Some Stress Management Techniques?
As Marcus Aurelius said: “We have power only over our minds, not outside events. When we realize this, we find true strength”.
One of the best stress relief methods is to accept our situation as it is. Worried about it and wishing we were in a different situation isn’t a productive use of our energy.
What’s much more valuable is the ability to accept that we are going through a tough time, and figure out ways to make our situation better. For instance, if someone is worrying about making rent next month, the energy they spend stressing over this fact is wasted. Instead, they could spend the effort to look over their budget and see where they can make some cuts.
One other method for stress relief is turning to chiropractic care for help.
How Chiropractic Care Can Relieve Stress
Your chiropractor will help to realign your spine, which can correct any imbalances throughout your body and encourage relaxation. By improving spinal alignment, and thus, nerve connections to the rest of the body, you will be better equipped to address your stressful situation.
If you’re looking for a Parker Chiropractor, schedule an appointment with Awaken Chiropractic today!
