Stressful Stumbles: My Experience and The Science of Bouncing Back.
Hi friends,
I am thrilled to be back and hope you all had a great summer. During my break, I focused on the very advice I often share with you – making my health the top priority despite life's highs and lows. In 2023, I've been dealing with my health journey, and today, I want to share some insights that might be beneficial for you too. Let's talk about stress – what it truly is and how it impacts our well-being, along with practical ways to maintain balance as we navigate through life.
As many of you know, I have a keen interest in science and love experimenting with various approaches to see what works best. Stress is a natural part of life and can be seen as a positive force, motivating us and preventing stagnation. However, it's crucial to recognize that there's a healthy limit to stress, known as our “allostatic load.” Think of it as a bucket that can hold a certain amount of stress each day. As long as we don't exceed this limit, we can manage stress effectively.
What contributes to stress? Well, several factors come into play. Physiological aspects like engaging in intense workouts or simply fulfilling our basic needs for food, water, shelter, and safety can all contribute to our stress levels. Additionally, dealing with illness or inflammation can take a toll on our bodies. Even neurological conditions such as cPTSD or PTSD can also contribute to the build-up of stress. Moreover, high-pressure jobs or feeling overwhelmed by perceived demands can pile on to our already existing stressors. All these factors combined add up to what is known as our allostatic load.
In my personal journey, I found myself overwhelmed with stress due to cPTSD, the challenges of losing a business in the pandemic, managing a business during COVID-19 and the constant uncertainty of running it without a safety net. My dedication to intense performance-based training also took a toll on my well-being because I was not adjusting the intensity of the workouts to the intensity of my stress.
What did I do? Well I initially pretended like things were fine so I could keep my routine. Things were not fine. I found myself with a slew of symptoms such as gaining weight around my thighs and midsection, acne, insomnia every night from 3:00am on, constipation, lack of “motivation” or “energy” to do the things I wanted to do, let alone a load of laundry or having to shower was overwhelming to me, I lacked empathy and therefore was missing connection with others and in fact I didn’t even want to be around humans, even the ones I loved the most.
Then I started having panic attacks.
Taking a cortisol test revealed startlingly high levels, like seven times higher than the top range – a sign that my body was reacting as if in a constant panic state, with little dopamine and serotonin to counterbalance.
A wake up call to what I had always done to create health in my life, wasn't working. So I embarked on a journey of curiosity and openness to new perspectives. Is what I am pursuing MY definition of health or someone else's? I also faced the shame of struggling with stress while being the walking, talking billboard for health and well-being. I am a Holistic Health Practitioner and COACH for Pete’s sake! I’ve been “working on myself” for 10 years. Why is this happening now?
However, understanding that stress is a physiological response to internal and external stimuli helped me comprehend the root cause. Which is what I want to share with you all now.
When we experience stress, the body releases cortisol to prepare for action – this can be beneficial for creativity or a quick response to danger. However, chronic stress, especially when it's internally driven (like in cases of cPTSD or perceived life-or-death situations), can have negative consequences. The flood of cortisol hinders digestion, releases excess glucose (sugar) into the bloodstream, and triggers a "fight, flight, or freeze" response – essentially preparing us to escape from a supposed threat, like a saber-toothed tiger.
The problem arises when we try to fit more stress into our metaphorical “bucket" than it can handle. This excess stress leads to elevated blood sugar levels and insulin release, which promotes fat storage. Additionally, it interferes with our body's ability to recover from intense workouts due to inadequate nutrient intake, disrupts our sleep, and impairs our ability to create meaningful connections with others.
To address these issues, I had to redefine my own notion of health and fitness. What do those two things look like for me? Not someone else, including a past self or some ideal I had once committed to. So I got clear. My definition of health is moving my body in a way that is functional and considerate - not performance based. My definition has me sleeping peacefully through the night, eating nutrient dense meals AS as well as having ice cream and eating out from time to time - not a perfect macro or clean eating count. My ideal of health has me present with a focused and creative energy from one moment to the next. Having the ability to connect with others. Shaking things off faster and spending the time and energy doing the things I love to do. Removing things that are energy depleters, like rigoursless and rigidly demanding more of myself.
My definition of health and fitness could be totally different than yours. And that’s a great thing.
Remember, each of us may have a unique definition of health and fitness, and that's perfectly okay. The key is to live according to our own standards and not compare ourselves to others. By doing so, we can lead less stressful and more fulfilling lives. We all need to assess our “buckets” if you will. What are things we can do or things we can approach differently so they are stress reducers and not enhancers?
If you’re wondering how to do this for your own life, reach out to your coach. They are a fantastic tool to help you navigate how to approach and support your definition of health both inside and outside of the gym.
Talk soon,
Sarah
