How chronic stress makes you sick

Q: What can bad stress do to your body? Things at work are really out of control because we’re understaffed, and I have all sorts of weird symptoms I never had before. I have to get on top of this! – Kevin G., Chicago

A: I can’t stress this enough (lol) – chronic stress affects every corner of your body, from your brain function to your sex drive and your pain level to your relationship with food. But let’s look a little deeper at the various ways chronic stress can cause health issues.

We all know it can give you a headache or neck/backache. But excess negative stress may also affect your memory, make skin problems like psoriasis or acne worse, and most certainly shorten the length of your telomeres on your DNA – causing accelerated aging! There are also studies showing that it can lead to overeating (comfort from food) and raise blood glucose levels, increasing the risk for prediabetes and diabetes. Blood pressure can go up as well and, although it’s not conclusive, there’s growing evidence that work-related stress increases the risk for cardiovascular disease.

Stress can also make pre-existing chronic conditions worse. For example, stress can trigger an asthma attack – and even if you don’t have asthma, strong emotions can increase your rate of breathing, increasing panic. IBS symptoms, such as pain, diarrhea, constipation and nausea, can worsen with stress, and stress can cause those upsets in anyone’s intestinal tract.

Fortunately, just as you can make chronic stress a destructive force, you can also reduce its impact. Five ways to get a handle on chronic stress are:

• Aerobic activity, 30 minutes minimum five days a week.

• Mindful meditation, deep breathing, yoga and or tai chi.

• Call a friend every day – even ones you haven’t talked to in a while.

• Think of – and strengthen – your sense of purpose … why you are needed by an individual and/or a group.

• Cognitive behavioral therapy, to learn new ways to react to stress.

• Adopt an anti-inflammatory, plant-based diet.

• Avoiding excess alcohol and no smoking. You only think they make you calmer – they don’t in the long run.