Stress is a word that most people know and use or have heard frequently when talking about those situations that make us feel bad. However, this concept is normally related to the subjective experience of feeling stressed, that is, what makes us feel uncomfortable or even generally unwell; It is less common to know the true extent of stress in the human body, beyond the mind and consciousness of the person, when this reaction appears.
Therefore, in this article We will talk about how the human body reacts to stress. But first of all, let’s see what this phenomenon consists of.
Stress is a psychological and physiological mechanism that occurs in the body. when we face situations that we perceive as dangerous or risky, and puts us in a state in which our nervous system is activated more than normal and our muscles remain tense and ready to make quick movements. That is to say, it is a coordinated response of various parts of the body to a circumstance that we interpret as a challenge to which we must be alert, a consequence of millions of years of natural selection, favoring those capable of reacting quickly to the dangers and fleeting opportunities that present themselves.
From what we have seen so far it follows that stress is not a physical or mental health problem. It is true that we associate this word with the fact of feeling discomfort, but looking closely, it is normal for this to be the case; when we feel stressed, that experience It is part of what motivates us to address as soon as possible what we see as a problem or a challenge to make our body calm down and return to normal as soon as possible. Thus, in many cases, stress helps us detect what needs to be attended to urgently and keep it in our mind until the reason to worry about it disappears. And at the same time, it keeps our body ready to move quickly and to reduce damage caused by potential dangers.
Thus, stress is not a problem that threatens our quality of life, far from it. In any case, it is a mechanism that allows us to adjust to problems. In fact, if a person never experiences stress, that can be considered a sign that something is wrong in their brain or in their neuroendocrine system in general.
Now, there are always exceptions; As we will see, there are some circumstances in which, if we do not correctly manage our emotions and our behavioral patterns, Stress becomes part of the problem and begins to wear us down physically and mentally.
How does the human body react to stressful situations?
With what we have seen so far, we already know that stress is a temporary adaptation to situations that require us to focus on the here and now to seek quick solutions to problems that we perceive as immediate. Evolutionarily, it can be explained as a readjustment of the functioning of our nervous system and certain organs of the body to prepare us for two types of responses: fight or flight. Both involve speed of movement and thought, although channeling our efforts towards different actions. Therefore, the changes that the human body experiences when we experience stress are in line with these two types of behavior, and are as follows.
When a person is stressed, they become more sensitive to stimuli, since in this way they will be able to react faster at the slightest sign of imminent danger.
2. Increased muscle tension
By keeping the muscles of the body more tense than normal “automatically” (that is, without having to do it deliberately), we are able to take advantage of our strength, we move faster and by strengthening the muscles we better protect the vulnerable parts of the body in the event of injuries.
3. Increased heart rate and blood pressure
Since in a stressful situation you have to stay alert and know how to react quickly, the body gives the order for the circulatory system to work with greater intensity so that the blood can carry oxygen and other resources to the muscles more quickly
4. Reduction in capillary volume
While blood circulates more quickly, capillaries reduce their size to limit possible blood loss in the event of injury.
5. Sweating
Sweating is one of the consequences of the body’s temperature increasing due to the acceleration of its activity, since the need arises to dissipate the heat generated more quickly.
6. Recycling of glucose and other resources
On the other hand, stress causes the resources that under normal circumstances would go to all types of cells throughout the body to be redirected to those most involved in the fight and flight response, mainly those of the muscle fibers. Furthermore, also a process of cell destruction begins to capture their proteins and redirect them to the muscles a process that is especially noticeable if the high level of stress is maintained for a long time and that contributes to certain disorders giving rise to health problems linked to stress.
You may be interested: “This is how cortisol can damage the body”
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In Psychotools We have been treating patients with emotional, behavioral and lifestyle problems for many years, and we currently work both in face-to-face psychology sessions and through online video calls. In addition, you may also be interested in our Mindfulness courses and workshops designed for people to learn simple Mindfulness exercises that can be applied on a daily basis to keep excess stress at bay.
