How the Constant Stress of Uncertain Times Wears on Your Body

These uncertain times have left all of us feeling a little off of our game.

Working from home has been challenging as we struggle to find a balance between work and family. Taking precautions when we go out and following stay-at-home orders is stressful. Add in economic worries and thoughts about whether or not you will have a job, and you can see how it all affects you.

The consistent stress that you are experiencing certainly has an impact on you physically. There’s even a technical term for it: allostatic load. And it’s the reason why you’re feeling exhausted all the time.

Here’s how the constant stress of uncertain times wears on your body.

The Impact of Compounding and Constant Stress

COVID-19 has changed so much about how we live our lives. Those changes have, in turn, caused a lot more stress.

For example:

Working from home full-time
Taking care of children
Facilitating online learning for the kids
Everyone under the same roof all the time, with no outlet
An unstable and uncertain economic outlook
The cancellation of sports, event, and other activities you look forward to
Still maintaining all of the necessary household chores and tasks

All of this creates stress. To cope, your body releases stress hormones, such as cortisol. However, what happens when your body is constantly reacting to stress? The result is what’s called allostatic load.

Understanding Allostatic Load

Essentially, allostatic load is when your body reaches its maximum capacity for handling stress. When you reach that level, your body begins to compensate in other ways to cope.

This is why you feel so tired, sluggish, drained, and exhausted; because stress, with no letup, has been draining your battery. By now, you are at the point where the low power light is flashing.

It’s also why you just feel off and not quite yourself lately. That can be frustrating, especially when you are still trying to get your work done or take care of the kids. So you end up dragging your feet through each day as you try your best. Yet, you never seem to get very far.

What can you do to cope and recharge your depleted battery?

Coping with Constant Stress

There are a couple of things that you can do to cope with the unrelenting stress you are experiencing every day and recharge.

First, you need to identify your feelings. Doing so allows you to recognize and verbalize what you are experiencing inside. Remember, it’s OK to feel worried, scared, or frustrated. This is all about acknowledging what you are feeling, not ignoring it.

Second, you have to make sure that you do all of the things to stay healthy during these uncertain times.

That includes:

Eating nutritious food and avoiding using food as a coping mechanism to feel better
Having a regular sleep schedule
Exercising or doing some sort of physical activity each day
Reading for pleasure, journaling, creating art, hobbies, etc.
Avoiding getting lost in social media or getting caught up with the news of the day
Practicing a cool-down time in the evening when you put aside your electronics to prepare for bed
Staying connected with people you care about through video chats, phone calls, etc.

All of these things are important for coping with constant stress positively. And as you recharge your battery, you’ll also fend off the allostatic load.

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It’s helpful to know that there is a name for what you are experiencing beyond simply “tired” or “feeling exhausted.” The constant stress of these uncertain times has caused your allostatic load to reach maximum capacity. Taking care of yourself and acknowledging your feelings will help. However, if you are still struggling, ask me about how anxiety treatment can help.