Can you guess who are the biggest “stress stuffers”?  If you guessed “women”—you’re either a woman or very insightful!  Women are historically much more likely to disregard symptoms of stress than men.  In today’s society, the terms “women” and “stress” are synonymous.  Consider this—women most often manage the household, have full-time careers, are the primary nurturer to their families.  It’s only natural that after fulfilling these roles, there’s little, if any, time or energy left over to focus on personal needs. Read more »

photo credit: reinn

Symptoms of stress aren’t limited to physical ailments that lead to declining health. Stress can manifest in certain habitual behavior patterns—usually in areas that you are the weakest and have tried to overcome in the past. These sorts of behaviors usually represent something familiar and comforting—though they may actually be very destructive in the long run. Read more »

Symptoms of stress come in many forms, but a migraine headache may well be the most debilitating of all stress symptoms. 

Those who suffer with frequent to occasional migraines know that the mere thought of dealing with another migraine is enough to trigger a stress or anxiety attack.  Read more »

Do you frequently get headaches for seemingly no reason? They may not be incapacitating migraine headaches, but common, nagging, stress headaches that slow you down, fog your thinking and generally ruin your day? You may have gotten into the habit of popping an aspirin to take care of the symptoms without taking time to address the cause of your constant headaches–stress. Read more »

Most of us will experience some form of stress during our lifetime.  Problems on-the-job, marital strife, or illness causes stress.  Many other factors will cause stress.  Many find they have more stress at the happiest time of their lives.  During the holidays, the birth of a baby, or getting married are times when we are expected to be the happiest, yet that isn’t always the case.

There are many symptoms of stress, some are obvious and some take place internally and won’t show up for years.  Immediate symptoms of stress are readily noticed.  You may be unable to sleep because of racing thoughts and worry about the future.  You may find yourself overeating, especially the foods that you know will give you comfort.  My comfort food is French fries, so if I find myself going through the drive through once a day, I know I am showing a symptom of stress! Read more »

Anxiety is a normal body reaction to stress.  It helps you deal with tense situations, job issues, family problems, or you may be anxious about the state of the world.  Anxiety may be caused by world situations, changes in government, and the forecast of a natural disaster.  Some people may not be able to stop worrying about money problems, health issues or marital instability.  They may begin to show signs of anxiety, which can lead to other emotional and physical problems. Read more »

photo credit: makelessnoise

One of the worst and most common symptoms of stress is a blinding migraine headache. Migraine headaches are often the result of the fast paced world we live in. Life, these days, can be hectic and chaotic—add to that the pressures of an economic downturn, stress on the job, demands of family, a fast foods diet and it’s no surprise that an increased number of people suffer from mild to severe migraines. Read more »