Posts Tagged ‘stress’
Anxiety is one of the most common psychosomatic conditions, characterized by the intense stress response, fear and panic, in response to a stimulus. Usually in anxiety the response is out of proportion to the causative factor and at times, there may be no clear cause for the anxiety, not even to the sufferer. Anxiety itself is an emotional state and triggers the release of adrenalin, the main stress hormone, which then has a physiological effect on the body. Adrenalin increases the heart rate, may slightly elevate the pressure, dilates the pupils and mobilizes the body’s glucose stores to provide for increased energy needs.
Stress and anxiety cause similar biochemical effects on the body due to the hormonal stress response. The activity of the hormones, adrenalin and cortisol, are released in excess when a person is stressed or anxious and this affects the body’s natural sleep patterns (circadian rhythm). These stress hormones cause a state of hyperexcitability, which may also be seen as irritability, restlessness, fear, depression or anger and sensitivity to stimuli like bright light, loud noise or strong odors.