Physical Symptoms of Stress

Do you have sweaty palms when you are waiting to make a presentation to your boss? Or is it that you suddenly start feeling cold while waiting at the airport to catch a flight? Or do you sometimes become completely numb and tongue tied in front of a senior professor? If you often experience such symptoms and the doctor does not attribute them to any specific health concern, there is a great likelihood that these symptoms are caused by stress.

It is often wondered about how a psychological condition like stress can result in totally unrelated physical symptoms like skin breakouts, diarrhea or for that matter constipation. The explanation lies in the state known as the hyper-arousal state.

The human body developed a stress response to prepare itself for to meet physical threats that were common in Stone Age. The body underwent drastic changes so as to provide the extra strength required for fighting or fleeing if an animal attacked, for instance.

Despite the fact that psychological threats are more rampant in modern life than physiological ones, the human body continues to respond to stressful situations in a physiological manner. Any threat, real or perceived, still brings about similar changes in our bodies. The complex human body that comprises of a system of reciprocal actions and reactions cannot balance the level of chemicals in the body. This disruption of chemical levels leads to physical symptoms that can appear in any part of the body.

Stress is often termed as a silent killer as chronic stress can hamper your overall health in more ways than one. Besides psychological symptoms, chronic stress can lead to a number of physical symptoms, some of which have a long lasting affect.

Some of the physical symptoms of stress include:

• Muscle tension and stiffness
• Low back pain
• Muscle spasms or nervous tics
• Sweaty palms
• Butterflies in stomach
• Indigestion
• Nausea, dizziness
• Insomnia
• Headaches or backaches
• Diarrhea or constipation
• Chest pain, rapid heartbeat
• Weight gain or loss
• Skin breakouts (hives, eczema)
• Loss of sex drive
• Frequent colds

In addition to all these chronic stress also leads to some behavioral symptoms, which in turn can have serious repercussions. People suffering from constant stress are known to indulge in excessive smoking, alcohol and drug abuse. The long term effects of these are too well known to write about.

Back to Symptoms of Stress.