Feeling Stressed? January 28, 2010

Stress is the way your brain responds to any kind of challenge. Believe it or not…Stress is not always a bad thing.  A certain amount of stress in your life helps to motivate you to accomplish your daily goals, keeps you alert, and helps prepare you for the activities to come.  You can experience stress due to both good and bad experiences. When you feel stressed by something going on around you, your brain reacts by releasing chemicals (designed to give you more energy and strength) into your bloodstream, which can be a good thing if your stress is caused by physical danger. While normal stress protects your body in times of threat and helps to motivate you, prolonged stress may potentially damage your body, including your brain.
 
How can stress affect your brain?  Robert Saplonsky at Stanford University, among others, have studied the effects of stress on the health of the body.  He reports that, if you go a long time with a high amount of stress, certain areas of your brain can actually shrink, specifically the hippocampus.  Your hippocampus is very important in the storage and retrieval of memories; therefore, Saplonsky reports that people under prolonged stress demonstrate forgetfulness and difficulty learning. On the positive side, he reports that some portions of the hippocampus can recover once the stress response is reversed.
 
What does this mean for survivors of brain injury?  Last month I wrote about a couple of instances in which I had episodes of forgetfulness due to distractions.  These episodes happened to coincide with the holidays (a particularly stressful time).  If you are a survivor, you will likely find that the residual cognitive difficulties from your brain injury are worsened during times of stress.  It may be harder to divide your attention during daily activities, you may notice more episodes of memory difficulty, it may feel as though you are having a more difficult time staying organized and using your strategies, you may become frustrated or angry more easily.
 
How can you reduce the effect of stress on your brain?  The easiest answer is to get rid of stress.  However, we all know that eliminating stress is not a reasonable expectation in our society.  All you have to do is turn on the TV (two wars, earthquakes in Haiti, financial recession, budget cuts) in order to experience stress.  However, the habits you develop can help you protect your brain from the harmful effects of daily stress.  Here are a few of the common recommendations made by experts in stress management:
 
Exercise: regular physical activity will strenthen both your brain and your body.  It reduces your likelihood to become depressed and anxious. There are tons of scientific studies that have shown the relationship between exercise and mood. In addition, exercise will help you feel more awake during the day, and will help you sleep better at night. All of these benefits help your body recover from the negative effects of stress.
Relaxation: turn off the television and listen to quiet music, light a candle, or sit in the bathtub. Tell your body and your brain to slow down for a little while each day.  These techniques will be beneficial for your blood pressure and the tightness of your muscles, which will help counteract the effects of stress.
Social Time: spend time with your friends and family.  These relationships can help you become more emotionally healthy.  There are a number of studies that show the beneficial effects of owning a pet on reducing stress as well.

Attitude: Charles Swindoll once said “the remarkable thing is, we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.”  While it does not always feel this way, you do have a choice in how you view the world.  Your response to that choice makes a difference in how you deal with stress in your life.
Take Care of Your Body:  Your body really is a temple—avoiding smoking, alcohol, minimal caffeine intake, balanced nutrition and weight control will help you feel more “in control” of your life. Stress is often related to the anxiety caused by feeling out of control.
 
Change takes time.  Do not expect to immediately fit all of these suggestions into your life.  Pick one and focus on it for a month.  Repetition forms habits.  It’s up to you to pick habits that are healthy for your brain! 

Thanks for listening.  Talk to you next month.
Dave