10 Common Things That Trigger Chronic Stress

You know that when you’re getting chased by a tiger, you’re almost in a car accident, your “to do” list is overflowing, and you’re burning the candle at both ends, your body’s “fight-or-flight”  stress responses are going to get triggered. But you might not know what else will trigger stress responses in your body, and it’s important that you do!

As I explain in Mind Over Medicine: Scientific Proof That You Can Heal Yourself, the body has natural self-repair mechanisms that can fight cancer, prevent infection, repair broken proteins, protect your coronary arteries, and retard aging. But whenever the nervous system is in “fight-or-flight,” the body’s natural self-repair mechanisms are disabled!

The amygdala in your primordial limbic brain is your danger alert signal, and it hasn’t evolved to keep up with modern society, so your amygdala can’t tell the different between dangers that threaten life and limb and perceived dangers that are merely thoughts, feelings, or beliefs in your mind. As a result, your amygdala may be sabotaging your health, and you may not even know it!

So how can you avoid chronic repetitive stress responses? Here are 10 surprising “fight-or-fight”  triggers to avoid:

1. Feelings of loneliness

As a species, we are tribal people, so from a survival perspective, being alone too much can signal the amygdala to trigger stress responses. Makes sense, right? If we’re dependent on the tribe to keep us safe, forebrain feelings of loneliness can activate the amygdala’s danger signal. Scientific evidence suggests that people who are part of a supportive community have half the rate of heart disease when compared to lonely people, and this may explain why.

2. Hunger

If you feel hungry, the message you’re sending your danger-seeking amygdala is “Houston, we have a problem! There’s not enough food!” Of course, your fridge is full of food and maybe you’re 50 pounds overweight, hungry because you’re trying to diet. But your amygdala is not smart. It can’t tell the difference. So boom: you’re in stress response, and your self-repair mechanisms are flipped off.

3. Selling your soul for a paycheck

You know that your job can be stressful. But it’s not so much being busy or working hard that will trigger your “fight-or-flight.”  Sure, even a job you love can stress you out. But you’re much more likely to wind up in chronic repetitive stress response when your integrity is on the line.

4. A pessimistic world view

If you’re a glass-half-empty kind of person, your forebrain is communicating all kinds of scary messages to your amygdala on a regular basis, thoughts like There’s not enough money, or Nothing ever goes my way, or Nobody really loves me, or other Eeyore sorts of thoughts that stimulate stress responses in the body. In fact, optimists have a 77% lower risk of heart disease than pessimists, and this is probably why. 

5. Toxic relationships

While loving relationships and a supportive community are calming to the amygdala and healthy for the body, you’re better off being alone than being in the company of people who stress out your nervous system. When you feel threatened in a relationship- not just physically, but emotionally- your nervous system interprets that as danger.

6. Being a worry wart

Anxious thoughts make the amygdala go ballistic. If you’re filling your brain with worries about the kids, the state of affairs in politics, whether or not your lover is going to break your heart, or how quickly the glaciers are going to melt, you’re certain to trigger stress responses.

7. Childhood traumas

You know those old childhood issues that stick around if we don’t heal them? You may not even realize that subconscious thoughts arising from old traumas may be triggering your amygdala when you don’t even realize it. Triggers such as places, scents, songs, or other sounds that remind you of the trauma may trigger “fight-or-flight,” even if you’re completely unaware that it’s happening.

8. Unforgiven resentments

When you harbor resentments—against your ex, your mother, your boss, whomever—you fuel your amygdala. Resentful thoughts are interpreted by the amygdala just like thoughts of food scarcity or a tiger on the loose.

9. Anger

It’s not just rage that will flip you into “fight-or-flight.”  Even thoughts like Someone just spilled red wine on my white carpet can trigger your limbic system.

10. Feelings of helplessness

The amygdala likes to feel in control—after all, it’s the amygdala’s job to protect you from danger! So feelings of helplessness can land you in “fight-or-flight.”

If reading this list sends you into “fight-or-flight”  just because you’re feeling all 10 of these things right now, don’t despair. This is where you get to be proactive! Awareness is key. Once you start to cultivate awareness of what triggers your own stress responses, you can be mindful about how you tend the garden of your mind so you can keep your amygdala calm and keep your self-repair mechanisms doing what they do best- keeping you healthy!  

Lissa Rankin

The Connections Between Emotional Stress, Trauma and Physical Pain

Chronic pain can be caused by trauma and stress.
Published on April 8, 2010 by Susanne Babbel, Ph.D., M.F.T. in Somatic Psychology

Studies have shown that chronic pain might not only be caused by physical injury but also by stress and emotional issues. In particular, people who have experienced trauma and suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are often at a higher risk to develop chronic pain.

Chronic pain is defined as prolonged physical pain that lasts for longer than the natural healing process should allow. This pain might stem from injuries, inflammation, or neuralgias and neuropathies (disorders of the nerves), but some people suffer in the absence of any of these conditions. Chronic pain can debilitate one's ability to move with ease, may hinder their normal functioning, and the search for relief can lead to pain medication addictions, which compound the problem. Chronic pain is also often accompanied by feelings of hopelessness, depression and anxiety.

Many people are already familiar with the fact that emotional stress can lead to stomachaches, irritable bowel syndrome, and headaches, but might not know that it can also cause other physical complaints and even chronic pain. One logical reason for this: studies have found that the more anxious and stressed people are, the more tense and constricted their muscles are, over time causing the muscles to become fatigued and inefficient.

More subtly, one might develop psychosomatic symptoms or stress-related symptoms because of unresolved emotional issues. These are not new discoveries; researchers have studied the mind/body interrelationship for several decades because of the importance of this link.

Experts have noticed that experiencing a traumatic event can have an impact on the development of pain. In fact, approximately 15-30% of patients with chronic pain also have PTSD. Peter Levine, an expert on trauma, explains that trauma happens "when our ability to respond to a perceived threat is in some way overwhelming." Most researchers disagree on a precise definition of trauma, but do agree that a typical trauma response might include physiological and psychological symptoms such as numbing, hyperarousal, hypervigilance, nightmares, flashbacks, helplessness, and avoidance behavior.

During a traumatic event, the nervous system goes into survival mode (the sympathetic nervous system) and sometimes has difficulty reverting back into its normal, relaxed mode again (the parasympathetic nervous system). If the nervous system stays in survival mode, stress hormones such as cortisol are constantly released, causing an increase in blood pressure and blood sugar, which can in turn reduce the immune system's ability to heal. Physical symptoms start to manifest when the body is in constant distress.

If someone has experienced a trauma prior to their current injury or trauma, old memories can potentially be triggered, exacerbating the effects of the newer trauma. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, a well-known trauma researcher, explains; "Research has shown that, under ordinary conditions, many traumatized people, including rape victims, battered women and abused children, have a fairly good psychosocial adjustment. However, they do not respond to stress the way other people do. Under pressure, they may feel (or act) as if they were traumatized all over again."

Often, physical pain functions to warn a person that there is still emotional work to be done, and it can also be a sign of unresolved trauma in the nervous system. Even if one has grieved and processed the emotional impact of a trauma, the nervous system might still unwittingly be in survival mode.

Maggie Phillips, author of Reversing Chronic Pain, writes: "Whether or not trauma was connected to the event or condition that originated their pain, having a chronic pain condition is traumatizing in and of itself."

Since trauma has been found to have a strong correlation to chronic pain, a combination of psychotherapy and physical therapy would be the most logical pain management option for stress and chronic pain relief. Psychotherapy that uses imagery, addresses the nervous system, and facilitates cognitive behavioral therapy is recommended.

To tackle the physical aspect of chronic pain, Mindy Marantz, director of the Healthwell clinic in San Francisco, suggests focusing on alignment in the body, as well as posture that supports organized alignment. Additionally, she advises to address potential inflammation, and provides strategies to help calm the nervous system such as Craniosacral therapy or Feldenkrais Movement Re-education. "These both will help 'stoke' the lymphatic system, which in turn helps diminish the effects of fluids that pool as a result of injury. Lymphatic massage as well as compression wraps and education help bring this often overlooked pathway to recovery to patients' attention."

Beginning a daily program of walking can help to mobilize the muscles and is the best way to stimulate the lymph system to do its job and oxygenate injured muscles. The International Association for the Study of Pain concluded that acupuncture is also effective in long-term chronic pain reductions related to musculoskeletal pain.

Although one might not be aware of the lingering effect of the trauma, or believe that the traumatic event has been put behind them, the body could be clinging to unresolved issues. Relevant psychotherapy can help to resolve the physical problems.

                                                                

Miscarriage and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Miscarriage can be a surprising cause of PTSD.


Published on November 16, 2010 by Susanne Babbel, Ph.D., M.F.T. in Somatic Psychology

When we think about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, we often think about war veterans and those who have endured violent crimes. But there are many other ways in which PTSD can affect victims of other, perhaps less obvious trauma. One of the less recognized forms of PTSD results from the trauma of having a miscarriage. While a period of grieving and sadness is to be expected after losing an unborn child, it's important to recognize when normal grieving ends and clinical PTSD begins.

If a miscarriage happens before week twenty, it's officially called a "spontaneous abortion (SAB)." After the twentieth week of the pregnancy, the medical term is "stillbirth." Numerous studies have shown that about a quarter of all pregnancies end in miscarriage in the early stages. That's a pretty high number. However, stillbirths are far less common, and statistics show that they occur only roughly in 1 in 200 pregnancies.

A miscarriage could occur for many reasons-age, hormonal changes, lifetsyle, improper implantation of the egg, or trauma. And while it's not always possible to know why a late-stage stillbirth occurs, a few common explanations are issues with the placenta or umbilical cord, chromosomal abnormalities, and infections.

Women who have made the conscious choice to have a child begin bonding with that unborn baby very early on. Intense hormonal and physical reactions can be dramatic, as well as the unexpected loss of a baby that the mother has already started to bond with in-utero. The further along the pregnancy evolves, the more potentially traumatic a miscarriage can be. In addition, a miscarriage that occurs in the later stages of pregnancy can be very painful and require major surgery to recover from. Things like breast engorgement and hormonally-induce postpartum depression need to be added to the already debilitating emotional aftereffects.

By far the most common PTSD symptoms that result from miscarriage are depression and anxiety. Other symptoms may include fatigue, sleep difficulties, lack of concentration, loss of appetite, and frequent episodes of crying. The impact of the trauma depends on the inner and outer resources of the new mother, her stress level at the time of event, the strength of her relationship with a partner (if she has one), outside support, the important of her hopes of creating a family, and her level of ability to grieve. Parents who have experienced miscarriages need not only to process their grief but also to resolve their trauma. It's vital that the former mom-to-be recognize that the miscarriage was out of her control and not her fault.

For those trying to navigate how to approach a partner, family member, or friend who has recently experienced a traumatic miscarriage, sensitivity and patience are key.

Here are some appropriate steps to take if you or someone close to you has recently experienced a miscarriage and is struggling to come to terms with it:

Seek counseling. Your doctor is a great place to start. He or she can provide answers to questions that may put your mind and heart at ease, and will also be able to recommend further counseling sources.
Create a support system of friends and family. Being able to talk about it can help profoundly.

Get an evaluation for Acute Stress Syndrome. If the symptoms last for more than a month, seek follow-up testing for PTSD. Research has found that up to 25% of miscarriage victims meet the criteria for PTSD a month after the event. *
Not every woman who suffers a miscarriage will suffer from PTSD. According to the American Family Physician, "Anecdotal evidence suggests that up to ten percent of women meet criteria for ASD (Acute Stress Disorder) within one month of having a spontaneous abortion and that up to one percent meet the criteria for PTSD four weeks after the event." In order for a diagnosis of PTSD to be validated, a victim of miscarriage must experience symptoms for longer than four weeks. ASD, on the other hand, can set in after only a few days. **

Healing does not mean forgetting. Communicate with others, find support groups, educate yourself with books, allow yourself to grieve, and if you find yourself falling into depression, seek the help of a therapist.

Let go of grudges and feel better

By Steve Sisgold

 

If you've ever been dumped by a lover, demoted by a boss, or hurt or bullied by an old classmate, did you hold onto hateful thoughts or even carry revengeful actions out on them to get even or even feel better? It wouldn't be surprising if you did either of them, since we watch so many movies and feel so good when the good guy gets even with the villain.
However, new research is shining light on who actually gets hurt the most by carrying grudges and having prolonged hateful thoughts. According to Duke University, Univ. of Tennessee, and Stanford University, "Holding onto hurts, grudges, annoyances, pet peeves or old wounds hurts the body, especially when the memories are triggered by current life events." They confirmed a physiological link between negative emotional states like revengeful thinking and actions and how it produces stress on the body. They found that stress from revenge or hateful thoughts also lowers the immune system, leaving you more vulnerable to illness and asserts that, "People who are able to forgive can actually modify their heart rate, lower their blood pressure, decrease physical pain and even relieve their depression." Harvard Women's Health Watch also reported findings on how forgiveness instead of hate or holding on to grudges can benefit your mental and physical health. 

           

Two people who know a lot about the healing power of forgiveness are authors Master Charles Cannon and Will Wilkinson, who wrote a revolutionary new book, Forgiving the Unforgivable, How Survivors of the Mumbai Terrorist Attack Answered Hatred With Love.

Cannon, a Vedic Monk with a nonprofit foundation based in Virginia, told me about how he chose forgiveness over hate in Mumbai when he and 24 of his associates, visiting ashrams throughout India, found themselves under siege in the Oberoi, a five star hotel in Mumbai. "We all could have died," he admitted, " and two in our group did. Another four were injured. But, still, that didn't mean we couldn't forgive the terrorists."

He explained why they chose love instead of hate. "It wasn't about denying what we felt," Master Charles explained. "It was horrible. We were afraid and terrified! Who wouldn't be? And when we learned the fate of our dear friends, we were deeply, deeply saddened. But the question remained, How would we choose to be in relation to what happened? Would we assume the role of victims who wanted our attackers to be punished? Or, could we make another choice? We did. We chose to answer with love, instead of hatred. We refused to let the terrorists control us and make us be just like them and we felt better for that choice"

News reports of other recent disasters have featured similar extraordinary gestures of forgiveness that made the victims feel better. When gunman Charles Roberts killed five young girls in an Amish school shooting in Pennsylvania, Amish community members chose to comfort Roberts' widow and even set up a charitable fund for the shooter's family. Azim Khamisa's son Tariqu was murdered in a gang-related incident but Azim chose to forgive rather than to seek revenge. He has since written four books and now offers public presentations and corporate seminars around the world on the power of forgiveness.

Is there a secret to forgiving the unforgivable? "It's all about who we choose to be in response to violence," Cannon believes. "If we retaliate with anger and vengeance then we've let another person control how we act and feel."

While most of us will never need to match the heroics of the Amish community or Cannon or Khamisa, we can learn how to forgive in our everyday lives. By embracing forgiveness, you can also embrace peace, hope, gratitude and joy and let go of stress, anger and pain you may be holding onto. Consider how forgiveness can lead you down the path of improved physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.

Peak Performance Training

Peak Performance Training

Neurofeedback or EEG Biofeedback helps the brain regulate itself and self regulation is key to optimal brain functioning. It is best considered as mental fitness training that over time teaches the individual's brain improved skills of managing attention, arousal (level of excitability), and affective or emotional state. The individual's brain already manages attention, arousal, and affective state to a certain degree, and the relevant mechanisms are in place to do so. Simply exercising those mechanisms strengthens and engages them, and allows the individual to have better control over his or her own behavior automatically. And when your brain is performing in its optimal manner, you are able to perform at your peak. Isn't this just what we all want. Life is so much better and easier when our brain is working at its best. We are calmer, more focused, attentive, confident and able to enjoy life more. When we achieve this, we are just better at whatever we choose to do. Become a better parent, a better spouse, a better boss, a better student, a better performer, a better athlete, a better employee - A BETTER SELF. Become YOUR BEST SELF!

RELAX, ENJOY LIFE and ACCOMPLISH MORE.

Stress is a total body response to a real or imaginary threat. It can save lives in emergencies by producing knee-jerk reactions which were indispensable to our ancestors who routinely had to flee from predators. However, in today's world, our survival is usually not at stake, and the problems we face require a calm mind for creative solutions. Unfortunately, the very parts of the brain that allow such reasoned response are bypassed under stress. Instead, we make decisions based on fear. One of the goals of the neurofeedback software is to evolve the reactive brain into one that is interactive, and not only during a crisis but in everyday life.

When the human body and mind perceives a threat it goes into flight or flight mode. When this happens stress chemicals flood the body causing the heart to beat faster, the blood vessels to constrict, perspiration and breathing to increase and muscles to become tense. In addition, during this phase the auto immune system also becomes depressed making the body more vulnerable to illnesses. After the threat goes away, your body and mind are not quick to turn these responses off and often do not return to their original state and in part the body and mind continues with this unhealthy response to stress. The heart continues to be stressed and other muscles continue to hold tension. This "normal" stress response is ideally suited for real life and death situations. But when we have this response to other stressors in our lives that are not life or death, this response is over kill.

After a while a person can get used to these stress symptoms in their body, if they do not learn to cope with the stressors in their lives these symptoms start to cause problems in the body, even though the person may be unaware of it.

If someone does not pay attention to these signs and symptoms they can evolve into anxiety, depression, headaches and other pains, stomach and bowel problems and coldness in hands and feet. In addition the stress hormone cortisol can make you inattentive, disorganized and unable to remember simple tasks. The body and mind can no longer cope with the ongoing physiological changes and you are receiving a strong warning to make changes to your life.

Neurofeedback helps your brain to respond better to stresses. It can calm down your "over the top" responses to everyday challenges. Those things that you know shouldn't bother you, stop having an effect. And irritations start to roll right off. You are able to calmly approach your challenges, focus on your end goal and be your best.

For those who have high stress careers or high stress demands on life, have you already begun to see the effects of this over the top response to stress? Is it impeding your performance? Would you like to learn how to respond to these stressors in a healthier way - one that shields your mind and body from all of those disastrous effects and at the same time become a winner in your field? Take charge of your life, by empowering your brain to work at its optimum.