The role of stress!

According to Stanton et al.,  “ Stress alters mesolimbic reward processing in humans and animals, and these changes are linked to anhedonic behavior.” In other words; Stress steals our joy. More alarming is stress “increases the risk for several psychiatric disorders (stanton et al., 2019). Stress is a normal part of life and can be experienced with positive and negative life events. Some common negative stressors include work stress, marital stress, relationship stress, parenting stress, and health stress. Common positive events include relocations, marriage, starting a new job, and pregnancy. Yet; most of us are not intentional with reducing or coping with the stress in our lives.

Visit Mental Health America’s website for quick screening of your stress level.

https://mhanational.org/get-involved/stress-screener

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Stress Management Techniques

1. Mind- Body Therapies: Yoga, Tai chi, guided imagery, meditation, breath focus

2. Physical exercise

3. Restful sleep

4. Cognitive strategies (changing unhelpful thinking)

5. Building your support system (friends and/or family)

6. Ending toxic relationships

7. Problem Solving