[rebecca]

Stress is how we react when we feel under pressure or threatened. It usually happens when we are in a situation that we don’t feel we can manage or control.

Sometimes, a small amount of stress can help us to complete tasks and feel more energised. But stress can become a problem when it lasts for a long time or is very intense. In some cases, stress can affect our physical and mental health.

Acute stress happens within a few minutes to a few hours of an event. It lasts for a short period of time, usually less than a few weeks, and is very intense. It can happen after an upsetting or unexpected event. For example, this could be a sudden bereavement, assault or natural disaster.
Chronic stress lasts for a long period of time or keeps coming back. You might experience this if you are under lots of pressure a lot of the time. You might also feel chronic stress if your day-to-day life is difficult, for example if you are a carer or if you live in poverty.

If you are stressed, you might feel:

Irritable, angry, impatient or wound up
Over-burdened or overwhelmed
Anxious, nervous or afraid
Like your thoughts are racing and you can’t switch off
Unable to enjoy yourself
Depressed
Uninterested in life
Like you’ve lost your sense of humour
A sense of dread
Worried or tense
Neglected or lonely
Existing mental health problems getting worse
Some people who go through severe stress may experience suicidal feelings. This can be very distressing.

Working out what triggers stress for you can help you anticipate problems and think of ways to solve them. Even if you can’t avoid these situations, being prepared can help. Making some adjustments to the way you organise your time could help you feel more in control of any tasks you’re facing, and more able to handle pressure. Although there will probably lots of things in your life that you can’t do anything about, there might still be some practical ways you could to resolve or improve some of the issues that are putting pressure on you. It’s not easy, but accepting that there are some things happening to you that you probably can’t do anything about will help you focus your time and energy more productively. Taking care of your wellbeing can help you feel more able to manage stress. Different things will work for different people, you could try spending time in nature, finding time to relax, developing your interests/hobbies and looking after your physical health. Build your support network, research shows that having a good support network can help to build resilience and make stress easier to manage.

Speak to your GP if you’re feeling overly stressed. There are a range of options available from talking therapies to medication and even alternative therapies such as yoga or acupuncture.

For more information: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/stress/what-is-stress/