Long-term stress takes a toll on your health, but it’s never too late to get help. Learn about stress fatigue and how to treat it in this article!
Topics covered:
- What is stress fatigue?
- Common symptoms of stress fatigue
- 5 ways to manage stress fatigue
- Minimize stress fatigue with The Art of Living
What is stress fatigue?
Everyone experiences stress from time to time. Events such as the loss of a loved one, divorce, and job loss are common stressors. However, major changes are not the only cause of stress — being a caregiver, dealing with a medical condition, or even juggling heavy responsibilities can leave you feeling emotionally exhausted.
If your stress is chronic or prolonged, you may experience stress fatigue, or emotional exhaustion, and your mental or physical health may suffer in surprising ways. Stress fatigue refers to the accumulation of negative life events that ultimately leads to an individual feeling drained or overly exhausted.
To combat the damage stress fatigue can have on your overall health, learning coping mechanisms is crucial. This article will provide you with several practical tips you can start putting to use today, even if you can’t eliminate the source of your stress.
Common symptoms of stress fatigue
As mentioned, stress can affect your health in many different ways. Some emotional symptoms of stress fatigue include:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Lack of motivation
- Feelings of hopelessness or apathy
- Irritability
- Nervousness
- Feeling stuck or trapped
In addition to these emotional effects, stress fatigue can lead to the following physical symptoms:
- Physical tiredness and mental fatigue, even with sufficient rest
- Headaches
- Muscle soreness and tension
- Appetite changes
- Weakened immune system
Not surprisingly, when you are not feeling your best, your behavior may also change, leading to a decline in your performance at work, school, or other responsibilities. Whether you fail to meet deadlines, take absences more often, or just work slower than usual, it’s likely the result of burnout.
5 ways to manage stress fatigue
Although burnout seems inevitable when you’re undergoing chronic stress, positive lifestyle changes can help you make it through these rough periods while taking care of your mental health. Keep reading for five suggestions that will help you manage your daily stress!
Identify and remove stressors
When you’re feeling overwhelmed or worn out, it may be hard for you to pinpoint your stressors. You may find it helpful to keep a journal nearby and write down your thoughts throughout the day or jot down these worrisome thoughts right before going to bed. Doing so may help you identify a common stressor in your life, such as financial problems, having too many responsibilities, or even a health condition you’re dealing with.
At times, reducing your stress is just a matter of removing the thing that is causing it or coming up with a practical solution to a problem. For example, if you’ve taken on too much at work you may consider delegating some of your responsibilities to others when possible. Taking on less gives you more time to relax and calm your nervous system.
Of course, some stressful situations are impossible to remove from your life. In this case, learning to control your reaction to stress can help. We’ll cover a few more ways you can improve your well-being, especially while living through long periods of stress.
Incorporate more movement
When you’re feeling stressed, exercise may be the last thing on your mind. However, making time for physical activity can benefit you in so many ways, especially your mental state.
Exercise reduces your body’s stress hormones, including cortisol and adrenaline. Meanwhile, it encourages the production of endorphins, which lift your mood and produce the famous “runner’s high” that athletes always talk about.
If you don’t particularly enjoy aerobic exercise, don’t worry — you don’t have to become a runner to experience the positive effects of physical activity. Even lighter forms of exercise, such as brisk walking, cycling, pilates, and yoga, benefit your brain and body, helping to reduce stress. No matter what type of exercise you enjoy, find some form of movement you enjoy and try to participate in that for at least a short while every day!
Tip: When you’re not feeling up to exercise, remember the feelings of optimism and relaxation you experience when you complete a workout. The first few steps are the hardest. Once you put on your workout clothes and get started, you’ll likely be glad you did and ready to complete your exercise routine.
Create a sleep schedule
Getting enough sleep is crucial because it allows your brain and body to rest and recharge. Sleep deprivation can affect your energy levels, lead to health problems, and influence your mood and judgment.
Healthcare experts recommend getting at least seven hours of sleep every night, having good sleep hygiene, and sticking to a consistent sleep schedule. Falling asleep and waking up at the same time every day reinforces your circadian rhythm, improving the overall quality of your sleep. Not only does it make it easier to wake up earlier, but you’ll likely notice yourself in a better mood because you feel so well-rested.
Embrace daily breathwork
When you’re stressed, one of the best things you can do is take a breather — literally! Breathwork has been around for thousands of years, and with good reason. This practice doesn’t require any fancy equipment, only knowledge of the techniques, which you can use anywhere.
The main goal of breathwork is to release stress from your body as you exhale and nourish your brain and body when you inhale. The studies on breathwork reveal many benefits, including:
- Increased mood
- Alkalinization of the blood
- Anti-inflammatory effect
- Relaxed nervous system
If you want to bring balance to your body and calm your stress, practicing breathwork should be part of your daily life. Taking the time to breathe with purpose lets your brain know that it can calm down and get out of the fight-or-flight state. Your body and brain can begin to function normally since there is no imminent danger, which will reduce the harmful effects of stress.
Practice meditation
When you’re going through stressful periods in life, meditation can help you feel calm and maintain a sense of peace. Not only does meditation help reduce stress, but it also tackles a lot of the side effects caused by stress. Some of the benefits of meditation include:
- Reduced anxiety and depression
- Improved immune system
- Better sleep
- Lowered blood pressure, cholesterol, and cortisol levels
- Reduces risk factors for serious health conditions, such as heart disease
- Increased focus
- Improved mood
When you’re consistent, you’ll find that it brings you the benefits listed above, and most importantly, helps you bring down your stress levels!
Minimize stress fatigue with The Art of Living
If you’re experiencing lengthy periods of elevated stress levels, your quality of life can be severely affected. Thankfully, you don’t have to let mental exhaustion get the best of you. There are steps you can take to improve your mental health and reduce stress-related health problems.
Art of Living courses can teach you the techniques you need to incorporate breathwork and meditation into your daily routine. By doing so, you’ll beat stress before it has a chance to build up. We invite you to try one of our online programs by joining a free one-hour introduction class!
