In many ways stress and its symptoms can be confused for anxiety. How do we know the difference? The answer lies in the situation that evokes the emotions. Whilst anxiety is the worry of situations yet to come, stress is our reactions to what is happening right now in the here and now.
Stress is the feeling of being under too much mental or emotional pressure.
Pressure turns into stress when you feel unable to cope. People have different ways of reacting to stress, so a situation that feels stressful to one person may be motivating to someone else.
Many of life’s demands can cause stress, particularly work, relationships, and money problems. And, when you feel stressed, it can affect how you feel, think, behave and even how your body works. In fact, common signs of stress include sleeping problems, sweating, loss of appetite and difficulty concentrating.
You may feel anxious, irritable, or low in self-esteem, and you may have racing thoughts, worry constantly, or go over things in your head. You may notice that you lose your temper more easily, drink more or act unreasonably.
You may also experience headaches, muscle tension or pain, or dizziness.
Truth be told, the impact of stress is far reaching and can negatively impact our lives in many ways. It can even exacerbate or prolong medical conditions as the body’s energy resources are all used up in handling the stress.
Together we can explore emotions and feelings in order to identify the root cause of the stressful reactions.
Rather than seeking to prevent stress we would look to ways in which you could manage stress more effectively, such as learning how to relax, taking regular exercise, and adopting good time-management techniques.
Studies have found that mindfulness courses, where participants are taught simple meditations across a series of weeks, can also help to reduce stress, and improve mood. Here at puzzled counselling, you can benefit from personalised guided mindfulness from a trained and qualified professional if that is something you wish to explore.
However, if coming to therapy is still a prospect that you feel you are not ready for then there are always people to talk to that can be there to listen in times of need.
0203 142 8650
Information, advice on stress management, workshops.
0800 1111
ChildLine is a counselling service for children and young people.
0808 808 4994
Help for adolescents in managing stress and anxiety.
0300 123 3393
The Mind Infoline offers thousands of caller’s confidential help on a range of mental health issues
Gentle, meditation website and app with de-stressing guided meditations ranging from 2 – 20 minutes.
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