Ep. 60 - Real Talk: Dealing with Stress When You Can’t Meditate

I am going to be completely honest here: the last few months have been completely and utterly stressful, and I have not been very good at practicing what I preach...   My mother has had some health challenges, my best friend and I have been in a bit of a Mexican Standoff, and, of course, it’s tax time... but the only self-care I have been doing is working out. Even then, I have been pushing myself hard, probably stressing out my adrenals a little too much.   We all have stress, but how we handle it and take care of ourselves is critical. Stress is a factor in five out of the six leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer, stroke, lower respiratory disease, and accidents. In fact, it’s estimated that a whopping 75 to 90 percent of all doctor visits are for stress-related issues.   On top of that, chronic stress can also damage your gut, which, as you know by now, is the gateway to health, opening the door for a whole host of issues.   How Stress Damages Your Gut   I often talk about how the gut is the gateway to health, and how a damaged gut can impact other areas of your health, including your brain. But the brain and digestive system actually share a two-way connection, so not only does a healthy gut affect your mental state, but your mental state affects how your gut functions. Let’s take a closer look at how this connection works.   Your Body’s Response to Stress   When you experience any kind of stress, whether physical (slamming on your brakes), emotional (going through a heartbreak), or mental (overloaded at work), your body processes it the same – through the adrenal glands.   The adrenal glands respond by creating a flood of stress hormones, including cortisol, which affect both your digestive system and your immune system (80 percent of which is located in your gut). Our stress response evolved primarily as a means of self-preservation from our ancestors facing immediate, life-threatening situations. Unfortunately, that response isn’t ideal for the type of chronic, ongoing stress we face today.   The Problem with Chronic Stress   The cortisol your adrenal glands produce revs up your immune system and is highly inflammatory. When you experience acute stress, such as a bear attack or the flu, your body’s natural short-term inflammatory response is exactly what you want to temporarily boost your immune system and give you energy to run.   However, in today’s world, we are all experiencing more long-term and chronic stress, such as always being available on our smart devices, working long hours, and over committing ourselves. We are not shutting off and unplugging, giving our bodies a chance to rest and recover. As a result, your body continuously cycles through periods of high inflammation, which can damage the gut lining, and a suppressed immune system, which leaves your gut vulnerable to pathogens you might be ingesting.   Furthermore, when your stress response kicks in, your digestive system shuts down. If you’re running from a predator, you need blood flow concentrated in your limbs for fleeing and your brain for problem solving, not in your gut for digesting your lunch.   Sustaining a high level of inflammation is also dangerous because it puts you on the autoimmune spectrum, and, if it continues over time, can trigger