IS STRESS NECESSARY?

We may be living longer, but we are not healthier. The National Alliance on Mental Illness states that 19% of all US adults experience some type of anxiety disorder. If you experience anxiety or depression, it doesn't have to persist throughout your life. Living the remaining years or decades of your life with a chronic condition, frequently visiting the hospital, is not enjoyable.

It is true that stress plays a vital role in keeping us alive, affecting everything from plants and insects to animals and humans. While short-term stress is essential and even beneficial, prolonged stress is the real issue, this is where damage can be done. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health is not merely the absence of disease but a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.

Stress is a natural response which begins at the amygdala, deep within your brain. The amygdala is a part of the limbic system that helps process emotions and behavior, especially fear and anxiety. When the brain perceives a threat, it activates the sympathetic nervous system, which prepares the body for action. Once the threat has passed, the parasympathetic nervous system takes over, helping the body return to a calm, resting state. Both systems operate automatically as part of the autonomic nervous system, meaning we have no conscious control over them.

Think about a time when you heard an unexpected sound and jumped before even knowing what it was. That’s your sympathetic nervous system reacting, causing your cortisol levels to rise. Cortisol is a hormone that triggers the classic fight-or-flight response. Your heart rate increases, your blood pressure rises, and your breathing becomes rapid and shallow. Once the moment passes and you're no longer in danger, the parasympathetic nervous system takes over, helping your body return to a calm and relaxed state. Most importantly, no harm is done to your body—and this is exactly what you want.

Today, things are quite different. We rarely face immediate, life-threatening dangers. Instead, we deal with ongoing, low-level stressors—like work expectations, household responsibilities, constant exposure to news and politics, and even intense entertainment, such as horror movies. It’s this continuous, unrelenting stress that takes a toll on our health. Our bodies simply weren’t designed to remain in a heightened state of alert day after day.

While these stressors often feel external, many of them come from within. We place enormous pressure on ourselves—to manage everything, to never ask for help, and to meet impossible standards. Perfectionism is a major driver. We expect ourselves to do it all flawlessly, forgetting that life itself is imperfect. Often, it’s not the world imposing these demands—it’s us.

However, we do need to work, prepare meals, pick up the kids, and care for elderly family members. It's the pressure we put on ourselves that’s so harmful—especially when we don’t manage it. And when we don’t, we become anxious, and may get headaches. When stressors aren’t managed or relieved, they can lead to anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, obesity, immune dysfunction, and more.

There are ways to protect your body from self imposed and unregulated cortisol harm. So what are some ways to activate the parasympathetic nervous system to help us? You can manage the way you respond to stress by connecting with nature, listening to music, exercise, practicing mindfulness, or doing yoga. You have the ability to take action. You have significant control over your life, and the choice is yours.