Stress can rot your brain
by Dr. Trisha McNair for BBC
Health
Could stress be to blame for your health problems? Alongside hormones
and viruses, it's one of the most common scapegoats women suggest for
their unexplained symptoms. In the past stress has often been dismissed
as irrelevant but now scientists are discovering that it can do very
real damage. Some suggest it may even rot your brain, harming vital
brain function and leaving you vulnerable to mental illness like
depression.
Effects of stress include:
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Without some sense of drive and a good dose of adrenaline, things just wouldn't get done and you probably wouldn't enjoy life so much. Bursts of adrenaline give us a buzz or feeling of excitement. But when you don't get a chance to unwind from stress, when the battering of adrenaline and other stress hormones continues without a break, the body goes into overdrive. The result is a drain on your body's vital systems.
Women, stress and depression
Women under stress are especially prone to anxiety disorders and depression. If you don't have a confiding relationship, or if you have a difficult marital situation, then stress is even more likely to get you down. Factors within you are also important, especially low self esteem and the feeling of being out of control in your life.
But how can something that doesn't even physically impinge on your body do you harm? The answer lies in the chemical changes in the body which are triggered by stress. For example, changes in the levels of steroid hormones and the chemical serotonin can damage the areas of the brain controlling mood, emotion, memory and motivation.
Dealing with stress
Stress becomes important when it outweighs your capacity to cope. So to protect yourself from stress you need to learn how to keep on top of it and turn it into a positive force in your life. The following will help:
1. sleep and rest - essential if you want to be able to face the stress of daily life;
2. a healthy diet, free from cigarettes, alcohol and stimulants such as caffeine;
3. regular exercise;
4. recognize the sources of stress in your life and find ways to cope better with them
5. de-stressing therapies such as yoga classes.
Source: (Ref: Herbert J: Stress, the brain and mental illness. BMJ 1997;315:530-5. www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/315/7107/530)
