Physical Reactions to Stress
- Headache
- Aching neck and shoulders
- Teeth grinding
- Heartburn
- Shaking legs
- Flushed face
- Dry mouth and throat
- Sweaty hands
- Poor appetite
- Upset stomach or nausea
You probably are familiar with many of the symptoms of stress. It can cause a number of unpleasant side effects in your body, in your mind, and in the way you behave. There’s no reason to be anxious about the symptoms of stress. However, it’s important to know what they are. When you have an idea of what to expect, you can recognize when you need to figure out ways to cope.
Physical reactions. Like Kayla, you might exhibit a variety of symptoms when under stress. Your heart beats fast, your breathing becomes heavier, and you sweat. You might feel various aches and pains as your muscles clench up or get tense. If they remain that way for a long time, they may cause pain, especially in the neck, back, and shoulders.
Headaches are often a common response to stress—a result of the increased amount of blood rushing to the brain. At the same time, the digestive system is receiving less blood, so your stomach typically feels queasy. Whenever you’re nervous, the stress response can produce a sensation often referred to as “butterflies” in the stomach.
There are two specific types of stress—acute and chronic. Acute stress occurs when the fight-or-flight response is triggered right away. The stressful feeling comes up quickly, is intense, and then disappears quickly. Chronic stress, on the other hand, lasts a long time. The body does not return to its natural state but remains in the fight-or-flight response.
If you are exposed to chronic stress, the constant high levels of adrenaline and cortisol in the bloodstream can cause all kinds of problems. Chronic stress weakens the immune system, leaving you at greater risk to catch infections and diseases. Symptoms of long-term stress can include insomnia, heart disease, and depression, as well as stomachaches and headaches.
Chronic stress can also be harsh on your skin. If your face breaks out when you’re feeling stressed, there’s a scientific explanation: the high levels of cortisol in your body are causing skin glands to produce more oil than necessary. Sometimes people under stress suffer from another kind of skin problem, which is slightly more serious but still not usually harmful—hives. These are itchy, swollen welts that can appear anywhere on the body and take up to twenty-four hours to fade away.
During the teen years, the human body undergoes many changes during puberty—the time when kids are maturing into adults. In girls, the hormonal changes associated with puberty (which typically occurs between the ages of eight and thirteen) cause the girl to develop breasts and begin having a menstrual cycle. However, the hormonal changes caused by prolonged stress can make that cycle irregular. After stress levels are lowered, it will return to normal.
Emotional and behavioral reactions. Chronic stress typically affects emotions and behavior. For example, if you’re struggling for several months to deal with a bully or your parents’ divorce, your low feelings and mood swings will affect your behavior. You may react to situations without thinking and have a low threshold for tolerating or dealing with challenges. If you are dealing with long-term stress:
Be aware that your low emotions and moods not only affect your actions, but also how others react to you. People undergoing long-term stress often reach a point where they simply don’t care what others think of their behavior.
If you’re dealing with a long-term stressful situation, you’re likely to become preoccupied and distracted. Your parents think you’re being rude. Your friends start to wonder why you’re giving them the silent treatment. Because you are having so much difficulty concentrating, you can’t focus in class. Your teachers think you’re not paying attention, and so your grades suffer. Stress can make your relationships with others become more difficult.
It’s important that you recognize when you’re stressed out. Then it will be easier to see how your behavior is affecting others. Try to be considerate of others as you attempt to function as normally as possible. For instance, no matter how irritable you’re feeling, try not to snap at anyone who shows concern.
Similarly, try to be patient when somebody else’s stress is driving you crazy. Keep a low profile when it seems like all your friends are stressed out. In fact, you might want to stay out of everybody’s way until things calm down.
A 2007 study released by researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine and colleagues found that teens under high levels of stress were 23 percent more likely than other teens to have problems with acne.
Whenever you’re stressed out, you can take a few precautions to reduce chances of a breakout: Wash—but don’t scrub—your face twice a day. Resist the urge to pop or pick existing zits. If you wear makeup or use facial cleanser, avoid products with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol or nutshell fragments.
