
Have you been feeling a little stressed lately, or all the time? Did you know that this can be the source of many musculoskeletal problems?
Stress causes the release of several "stress hormones." Norepinephrine, adrenaline, and cortisol are the three major components. When released in a dangerous situation these hormones can be lifesaving. They increase blood to our muscles and can cause us to be hyper-focused, helping us to react to the stressful situation.
When you continue to remain in a stressed state, the elevated levels of hormone, particularly cortisol, can cause more harm than good. The increase blood to muscle is taking it out of areas where your brain is deeming less important in this stressful situation. That means digestion decreases, which may add to weight gain. When your body is relying on immediate sources of energy blood sugar levels increase, but if it isn't burnt off then it becomes stored as fat.
When you body is on alert, our breathing becomes more rapid and increases our heart rate. This is supposed to help pump more blood to those "fight or flight" muscles. But when we do neither of those things it is putting unnecessary wear on our organs and lowers are immune system. This makes us more susceptible to illness and infections.
Many other systems of our body become hindered due to prolonged stress hormone exposure, which sets up a toxic environment, causes muscle stiffness and burning, fatigue, and even increases depression.
We have safe and effective methods for reduce the stress to your body, reducing aches and muscle spasms, and getting you back on track to being stress free and feeling like the old you. Through adjustments, both to your joints and lifestyle, the doctor can get you back to the better you. Make sure that you talk to your doctor about reducing your stress using a safe and natural method like we have available here at Allen Family Chiropractic.