I don’t understand how something like an actual ulcer or a headache could be caused by an “emotion” like stress.
In: Biology
Even doctors don’t understand it. I’ve been dealing with it my whole life. Doctors have written me off as a hypochondriac or done things to me which have made it worse in an attempt to cure it.
Emotions aren’t just little things in your head, but are the result of complex biochemistry in your brain as well, and involve signaling molecules and hormones that travel elsewhere in your body. Anxiety, stress, panic, anger, sadness, tiredness… All of it. Your body maintains and operates itself through *a lot* of hormonal and chemical signals, and often they can be associated with a need to *do* something.
For example, stress/panic can cause a state of heightened alertness, it can pull blood away from your digestive system and towards your extremities. A la, something might need to be *done*, maybe you’re in *danger* somehow, and you’re not in a (restful) state where you body judges *digestion* to be where your energy should go right now. After all, if you *need to deal with something now*, that’s higher priority than passively digesting your food.
However, remaining in a heightened ready-to-react or distressed state is not good for you. You’re not *supposed* to be stressed all the time. That energy is supposed to fix it, and then you continue on your way, not linger and keep pulling attention/energy/everything away from passive processes your body also needs to take care of.
Step1: Define stress.
… I’ll check back in 3 years, because that’s about how long it took me.
I swear to god the stress of being a parent made my beard (and only my beard) go from brown to grey.
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