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What is Stress?
Stress is your body's response to certain stimuli, which can come from physical, social, environmental, or imagined sources. The stress response involves a number of complex interactions in your brain, which affect the autonomic nervous system – the body functions that are not under your conscious control. There are more than one billion neurons in the digestive tract's nervous system (more than in the spinal cord) so stress is a significant factor in digestive health. Physiological adaptations to stress include:
a heightened state of awareness,
faster breathing and heart rates,
elevated blood pressure,
a rise in blood cholesterol, and
increased muscle tension.
Brief periods of stress can be beneficial for improved performance because these bouts equip your body to work harder and more intensely. This fight or flight response is good for short-term bursts of energy and concentration, provided the stress subsides and your body returns to its normal state soon after.
The information in this webpage is for individuals who are mostly functioning in society but, at times, have difficulty coping with everyday stresses. If you suffer from a mood disorder, such as bipolar disorder, clinical depression, or anxiety disorder, you should seek the help of a qualified medical practitioner.
Physical effects of stress
For those who experience persistent stress, another degree of physical response occurs, which involves lowering of immune system function, ongoing rise in cholesterol and blood pressure, increase of gastric acid, and decrease in sex hormones. In this state, normal life pressures may become overwhelming. As smaller strains pile up, such as job challenges, family troubles, financial difficulties, or personal relationship changes, the stressed individual may feel miserable or may be unable to manage at all.
All types of stress can affect the body, causing physical symptoms to appear, or aggravating pre-existing conditions. Physical symptoms include:
muscle tension - where muscles of the neck and back are held tightly for an extended period of time resulting in pain and tension that may be difficult to release,
headaches - triggered by excess tension in the forehead or neck muscles, or by general over-activation of the body,
loss of sexual desire,
diarrhea or constipation,
insomnia - a frequent complaint at times of worry and anxiety, making it harder to handle stressful situations, and
appetite changes - often during times of stress there may be a strong desire for comfort or high-energy foods such as fat and sugar, which could lead to weight gain. On the other hand, some people experience a total lack of desire for food.
How does stress affect gastrointestinal problems?
If you have a gastrointestinal disease or disorder, you are vulnerable to the effects of stress on your existing illness and may experience an increase in pain, aggravation of the disease process, and interference with healing. We should note that research has not shown psychological stress to cause structural problems in the gastrointestinal system; however, it can make existing conditions worsen, or increase the likelihood of relapse in patients with quiescent disease. Evidence of this exists for functional gastrointestinal disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), dyspepsia, gastroesophageal reflux disease, as well as for inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as Crohn's and colitis.
An individual coping ineffectively with chronic stress keeps his or her body in an over-activated condition, thus disrupting its normal operation, including that of the digestive system. Physical changes include a shift of blood flow away from the digestive system in addition to increased muscle tension and immune system suppression. These changes are significant for people with gastrointestinal conditions. Decreasing your stress levels and learning effective stress management techniques may be beneficial to your disease outlook and may decrease the severity of your symptoms.
How do you manage stress?
The two extremes are that some people can handle major upsets without batting an eye, while others become distressed at the slightest deviation from their normal routine. Most people fall somewhere in between. It is important to remember that in small doses, stress can be a good thing. It can give you the push you need, motivating you to do your best, and to stay focused and alert. Problems accumulate only when stress is constant.
The specific signs and symptoms of stress vary from person to person, but the potential harm to your health, emotional well-being, and relationships is real. Stress affects the mind, body, and behaviour in many ways apart from the digestive tract, including weight fluctuations, head and muscle aches, mood changes, and altered mental function.
How to de-stress & reduce anxiety or worry Choose foods carefully. Some foods can increase your stress level while others could help reduce stress. Inadequate nutrition increases stress on your body. Generally, fatty, sugary, and/or processed foods seem to increase stress in most people while lean meat, whole grains, and fresh fruits and vegetables seem to decrease stress. Ensure adequate vitamin and mineral intake. Choose foods wisely and, in addition to reducing stress, your body will love you for it!
Become a better breather. Stress can cause shallow breathing, which means that your body won't get enough oxygen to fully relax. Learn to breathe more slowly and deeply from your abdomen. One way to do this is to imagine that you have a small beach ball behind your belly button, which you slowly inflate and deflate.
Watch your "self-talk". Much of our anxiety is self-induced, meaning that we often get ourselves wound up worrying about worst-case scenarios or blowing small incidents out of proportion.
Monitor your negative thoughts to see how often you fret about things such as losing your job, or making mistakes. If you find yourself obsessing, try to substitute a negative thought with a positive, but realistic one. For example, instead of thinking, "I know something will go wrong during my presentation," tell yourself, "No matter what happens, I can handle it."
Get physical. Exercise is a well-known tension reducer. Take care to increase exercise slowly and assess your body's tolerance to this as you do, since high-impact exercises might induce GERD symptoms.
Become a better time manager. Many of us underestimate the amount of time it will take to do something, which means we're often running late. Try keeping a time management log for a week to get a better idea of how much time various tasks actually take, and then learn to prioritize them so that you're getting the most important things done first. A good rule of thumb, is to give yourself 20% more time than you think you need, to do the task.
Learn to say no. Thinking you can "do it all" creates unnecessary pressure. Learn how to set boundaries for yourself. Politely – yet firmly – turn down additional responsibilities or projects, for which you don't have the extra time or energy. Don't feel obliged to give long, detailed explanations as to why. A simple, "I'd love to help you out, but I'm booked up," will usually do in most cases.
Take time out for yourself. Our minds and bodies require a certain amount of variety, or else our overcharged nervous systems will keep speeding right into the next day. Try to take at least one day off each week to do something you really enjoy, whether it's reading, listening to music, or just hanging out with friends. Remember to include things like getting enough sleep, exercising your faith, having a leisurely bath, listening to music, playing with a pet, having conversations with friends, or anything that gives you pleasure.
Have a good belly laugh. Laughter is a natural stress reliever that helps to lower blood pressure, slow your heart and breathing rate, and relax your muscles. How do you tickle your funny bone? Catch comedies, have a chuckle with a friend, and make an effort to look on the lighter side of life.
What treatment is available for stress?
If you feel you need more than the above strategies, professional psychologists have developed a range of methods and useful tools for helping people handle stress more effectively. Some of the more frequently used treatment methods include relaxation training (progressive muscle relaxation training, biofeedback, and hypnosis), time management training, lifestyle changes, cognitive behavioural therapy, assertiveness training, deep breathing training, systematic desensitization, and brief psychotherapy. Your physician can assist you in accessing the appropriate treatment.
Warning
Take care when accessing stress management services to ensure you are receiving treatment from an appropriately trained and licensed professional. A poorly trained therapist may provide ineffective treatment, waste your time and money, fail to detect the presence of a more serious problem, and/or eventually discourage you from seeking real treatment.
We suggest that you seek referral to a medical professional in your area. Your physician may refer you to a trusted psychologist or registered counsellor who practises at a hospital or in a private clinic. Extended healthcare plans may provide coverage for this therapy and some communities may have programs covered by basic healthcare plans. As these vary across the country, we suggest you ask your physician about resources in your community.
Are you taking prescription medication for any of the following stomach problems/symptoms:
Stomach pain or discomfort
Heartburn
Sour taste in mouth/acid regurgitation
Excessive burping/belching
Increased abdominal bloating
Nausea
Early satiety
If you answer yes to any one of the symptoms listed above then take this test to see if your current medication is adequately controlling your stomach symptoms.
The PASS Test
PPI* Acid Symptom Suppression Test
*PPI is short for proton pump inhibitor, a class of medication used to suppress the acid in your stomach. These include Losec®, Nexium®, Pantoloc®, Pariet™, and Prevacid®.
