Get Inspired, Other
How Stress Impacts Our Everyday Life And Diet
Guest post by Nicole Stibbe BSc., CHC
The Importance of May 4th – May 10th
The month of May had Mental Awareness Week. Did you know that? It seems to have crept up with no pomp, no circumstance, and no commercials that I have seen. But yet according to Health Canada, 1 in 4 Canadians suffer from mental illness. Think about it: you and three friends sitting at a table, (physical distancing of course!), and one may have a mental illness. Astounding. And this mental health week has quietly crept up without acknowledgment and not a lot of ‘awareness’.
There are many causes and contributors to mental illness and I’m certainly not an expert in the field. But I do know, however, that stress impacts both mental and physical health. And I do know that we seem to be in a time of constant stress.
‘I feel stressed, ‘she looks stressed’, ‘that made me stressed’
are common phrases now – even before COVID-19. How did these become common phrases? When did they become the ‘norm’? How did this come about?
Among many other challenges, the issue with stress is that it causes the sympathetic nervous system to go into fight or flight mode. The parasympathetic – responsible for rest and digest, or feeling and healing – in turn, just shut down. Not enough time in the day results in us ‘eating on the run’. Deadlines and too many to-do’s cause us to eat under constant stress. We say ‘yes’ when we should have said ‘no’. We give up self-care because we feared it may be viewed as a luxury, or selfish. The list goes on.
We may not feel it because we have become immune to it, or just chock it up as ‘normal’ but it’s often there. Stress – even at a chronic low level, affects our physical health. Increased stress puts us into fight or flight mode.
What happens during fight or flight mode?
Think of a bear chasing you after you just ate. Your body has no interest in digesting food – its sole purpose during this time is to pump blood to your limbs and brain, so you can get the hell away from the bear! The thing is, whether it’s a bear chasing us, or trying to race through the door, get dinner ready, and get the kids settled with homework, the stress is the same and results in the sympathetic kicking into fight or flight. Unfortunately, this often causes decreased digestion, slower/reduced metabolism, and a sluggish feeling, even after we have eaten a full meal. Reduced digestion can result in the body storing more fat as it’s unable to effectively draw nutrients from the food. A couple of hours later, we end up binging on something in an attempt to provide pleasure – usually something that lacks nourishment. At the end of the day, this cycle has done nothing to help with our already existing stress. It often makes us feel worse.
Here are some quick steps you can follow to unplug & take care of your mental health:
- This week clear the calendar where you can. Say no to that invite, or that event that you really don’t want to go to. There will be other invites.
2. Do something to focus on yourself – do the self-care – it’s not an indulgence. Buy the damn luxury item you’ve been eyeing. Or make a home spa day.
3. Put on a cup of tea, and enjoy the sofa this weekend and any other weekend you choose. Read a book or watch a movie you have been putting away for later.
4. Eat slowly, eat healthily and enjoy the meal.
You deserve it – not just because there is a label of Mental Health Awareness Week, but because it’s good for mental health – at any time.
About the Author:
Let me introduce myself. I’m Nicole Stibbe – recovering perfectionist, recovering ‘is my butt too big in this’ asker, recovering ‘I’m exhausted’ feeler, recovering comfort food seeker. I’m on my own well-being journey which continues every day, but I know I’m better today than I was yesterday. I’ve learned to prioritize myself. I’m an opportunity.
Now I’m a wellbeing coach and I collaborate with busy working women who have deprioritized themselves, to embrace their bodies, increase self-esteem, health, and confidence while falling in love with themselves. I work passionately with women to draw awareness to self and health, inspire hope, and contribute to overall well-being. This is achieved through a collaborative partnership between you and me, focused on simple and gentle empowering habit changes, that lead to lifelong transformational health shifts. My work is one-on-one individual coaching, and/or providing corporate sessions focused on increasing well-being within organizations and teaching lasting and transformational well-being habits. Please feel free to reach out at [email protected] or www.affirmyou.ca
