The United States has a health problem, or really a sickness and illness problem. The health of the country is in decline and the reality is that much of that is controllable. 

According to the WHO (World Health Organization) 60% of the factors related to illness, disease, and quality of life are related to lifestyle. In a short while we will explore just what that means. 

Let’s put this another way. An extremely large percentage of deaths are preventable. Overall it’s been estimated that more than 48% of all deaths are linked to preventable causes. It varies for different illnesses and diseases:

• 90% of heart disease is preventable
• More than 90% of Type 2 diabetes is preventable
• 80% of strokes could be prevented

What about Stress? Stress is the glue that links all of this together. Where it comes to stress Medical Research estimates that as much as 90% of illness and disease is stress-related. 

One more time!

90% of all Illness and Disease is Stress-related!

Here are a few of my past articles related to stress:

Escape the Destructive Cycle of Chronic Stress

Stress is Primal for Survival and Involved in over 90% of Health Challenges

Discover the 6 Critical Steps to Regain Control of Stress in Your Life

HOW DOES STRESS IMPACT YOU AND YOUR HEALTH?

Let’s start by giving stress a broad definition for the purposes of this discussion. Stress is any stimulus that exceeds the body’s ability to process, causing a reaction in the nervous system. 

That reaction happens in the Autonomic Nervous System and more specifically to the Sympathetic (SNS) “fight or flight” System. 

When the SNS gets activated it turns the survival responses like:

• Increases heart rate
• Increases respiratory rate
• Increases blood flow to muscles and muscle tension

It also turns down the processes responsible for long term health and well-being like:

• Digestion
• Sleep
• Immune Response
• Rest and Recovery

Stress is rarely something that destroys our health all at once. It might cause some temporary indigestion or a headache but initially those challenges are transitory. The big challenge with stress is the long term consequences of stress on the body.

And, if you don’t think you are exposed to long term stress you are kidding yourself!

LEVELS OF STRESS DEVASTATION

The human body is incredibly resilient and able to endure tremendous challenges. Over time the impact of stress is cumulative. 

LEVEL 1: In the early stages of our exposure to stress it can actually feel good. When the Sympathetic System is activated and we are healthy it can be energizing. This is the fuel people use to burn the proverbial candle at both ends. This is what the typical Type A personality in corporate America relies on to work 80 hour weeks. 

At this level many people look healthy and pass their medical exams with flying colors. But, make no mistake, the devastation of stress is in motion. 

LEVEL 2: As time goes on and the stress continues we start to experience any range of mild challenges. Each person has their weak link. For some it might be periodic headaches. For others it might be acid reflux or indigestion. Some seem to start getting sick more often. 

At this level most people are able to manage their stress related symptoms with over-the-counter medications like Advil for headaches or Prilosec for indigestion. All the commercials for non-prescription drugs are directed to people at this level. 

LEVEL 3: Over time with the continued stress of modern life the annoying ailments of Level 2 get progressively worse. Rather than coming and going they tend to be present more often than not. 

This is the time many people visit their medical doctor to receive a latin name for their condition called a diagnosis. This is also when the doctor tends to write a prescription for medication to “manage” their condition. 

But, the stress continues and even if the medication helps with the symptoms, the underlying cause of all the problems continues. 

LEVEL 4: Over time the constant activation of the Sympathetic Nervous System leads to tremendous imbalances in the body. Everyone experiences these in slightly different ways depending on a number of factors. A few of the consequences of long term Sympathetic activity include:

• Digestive Problems: Irritable Bowel, Inflammatory Bowel, Ulcers, Colitis.
• High Blood Pressure and Heart Disease
• Systemic Inflammation
• Disturbed Sleep aggravating every other condition
• Anxiety

TAKE BACK CONTROL!!

While this process can take years or even decades to develop, the good news is it takes a fraction of that time to regain control and balance. Make no mistake, it will take awareness and commitment. And, you will want some expert guidance in learning how to restore balance to your autonomic nervous system. 

But, it is not easy. After all it is how you live, how you eat, your level of activity, how you deal with stress that led you here. 

There are a couple of basic fundamental strategies that will move you out of Sympathetic overload and help re-establish balance. 

Here are a few essential strategies:

• Movement: the human body was designed to move and move regularly. If you do not exercise it is essential you find an activity you can do regularly. There is an exercise routine appropriate for everyone from water activity and swimming to yoga to aerobics to weight training. Do something and do it regularly. 
• Diet: this isn’t the place to outline an ideal diet but it is pretty clear what you should be minimizing or eliminating from your diet. Things like: sugar, soda, excess caffeine, processed food, alcohol. 
• Bodywork: there are forms of bodywork that are extremely effective in reducing sources of irritation of the autonomic nervous system. This irritation serves as a constant activator of the sympathetic nervous system and at the same time inhibits the Vagus Nerve of the parasympathetic system. Some forms of effective bodywork are: corrective chiropractic care, craniosacral care.
• Vagus Nerve Activation: with prolonged or chronic overactivity of the sympathetic system the vital vagus nerve becomes inhibited. It is critically important to activate and retrain the Vagus Nerve. This can be done using a polyvagal approach. At Life Chiropractic in Grass Valley we use a strategy to implement practice of conscious breathwork

The Vagus Nerve is critical to improve and maintain health. Most chronic illness and pain is accompanied by a combination of reduced vagus nerve activity accompanied by an elevated activity of the sympathetic system. 

If you are local to Nevada County and would like to schedule an initial evaluation at Life Chiropractic in Grass Valley you can schedule here: Schedule Here.