Understanding the Fight or Flight Response and Its Impact on Your Body
Have you ever experienced the feeling of nervousness, stress, or panic when anticipating danger? Many of us are familiar with the concept of the ‘fight or flight’ response, which is linked to survival.
BUT do you understand the impact of sustained stress behind constant fight-flight responses and the impact on your body over time?
The Evolution of Stress: From Survival to Modern Life. What is the sympathetic nervous system?
In the past, our ancestors faced physical dangers like predators, opposing tribes, or severe weather conditions. Today, however, stress is much more subtle and often perceived rather than physical. Yet, both physical and perceived stress can have significant effects on your body. When stress becomes chronic, it leads to long-term changes in your physiology.
Our bodies are designed to have short bursts of stress, and times of recovery in between so that we can maintain homeostasis and health.
The sympathetic nervous system is the one which activates our ‘fight or flight’ response… that includes activating thyroid and adrenal glands to provide energy so we can get away from the danger.
The energy this system uses is destructive to the body when there’s no let up from the stress – short bursts won’t necessarily harm, but long-term, the body ends up scrambling energy from any source it can, as quickly as it can, not discriminating where it comes from – it can be using muscles and other energy stores not normally used for ’emergency’ functions.
Expanding waistlines from stress?
Imagine living in a world where your body doesn’t know anything except being stressed. That’s where so many people have spent most of their lives!
Your body is trying to just make sure you survive until tomorrow – do you have shelter? Enough nutrients to keep your heart beating and your brain working? Keeping only the necessary systems working near capacity, meanwhile other systems get the leftovers. Your body may be using muscle for energy at a pinch or finding other short term energy stores gained from sweet treats or other ‘quick fixes while we’re on the road’ (or comfort eating between the 100 things we try to multitask completing each day… and meanwhile you’re body is sensing that it is anything but safe and it keeps you more hypervigilant, and craving more quick fixes.
Perhaps you’ve gone ‘low sugar’ or you’ve done diets, strategies like intermittent fasting, keto or even carnivore – maybe seen some benefit, but then seen it disappear with time… your body is likely sensing that you are still not getting the nutrients truly needed, so it tells you that you’re hungry – are you hearing the cues though?
If you’re waistline has been expanding despite your efforts (or not going down with extra effort)… maybe your body needs LESS NOT MORE! The sympathetic nervous system is keeping you alive, not letting you heal.
You’re ok until you’re suddenly not!
If you stay in this ‘flight or fight’ mode… you will be burning through minerals, vitamins, potentially healthy muscle and other stores, and it will be detrimental to many systems – your digestion, adrenals and thyroid will be not working optimally over time. You may feel great now, and amazed at how you can ‘keep on keeping on’, but a more major stressful life event will happen, and “suddenly” you will have a chronic illness, an autoimmune condition or even just get everyday sicknesses all the time, and not seem to ever fully recover.
The Parasympathetic Nervous System: Nourishing and Healing
You also have a parasympathetic nervous system which is involved in nourishing, healing, elimination and regeneration of the body.
In contrast, the parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for nourishing, healing, and regenerating the body. When the sympathetic nervous system is activated, the parasympathetic system is suppressed. This can disrupt essential functions like digestion, liver and pancreas function, and overall metabolic health.
That is, the healting parasympathetic system gets ‘closed down’ to minimal operation when the sympathetic is active – imagine your body not being able to give much ‘attention’ at a metabolic level to your liver, kidneys, pancreas, stomach and intestines?
Chronic stress and perpetual time in sympathetic mode can lead to:
- Digestive disruption – food intolerances/allergies, slow motility, low stomach acid levels, constipation or diarrhea
- Low energy availability – where’s that energy coming from if you aren’t digesting?)
- “Dis-ease” in these organs – diabetes/insulin resistance/blood glucose regulation, low digestive enzyme availability, gall stones, low liver function, etc
- Auto-immune conditions – rhematoid arthritis, coeliac disease, hashimotos, etc
- Skin conditions such as eczema, dermatitis
How to Restore Balance: Tips for Managing Stress
If you want to support your body’s natural ability to heal and maintain balance, it’s essential to bring it into a parasympathetic state. This means REST.
In addition, nourishing your body with the necessary vitamins and minerals will help ensure you have the energy reserves required for both everyday functioning and stress responses.
If you suffer from anxiety, depression, insomnia, or similar conditions, managing these issues can be challenging. These conditions are often linked to mineral imbalances, so consider getting your minerals checked to understand how they may be impacting your body and brain.
Practical Tips for Reducing Stress and Improving Health
- Identify and manage stress: Take steps to remove or reduce sources of stress where possible. If stressors can’t be eliminated, find creative ways to minimise their impact.
- Incorporate relaxation techniques: Meditation, ‘me time’, and other relaxation practices are essential for promoting positive thoughts and reducing stress. Gratitude practices count too – what is ONE thing you can be grateful for right now? Make time for these activities every day.
- Focus on whole foods: Choose whole, unprocessed foods and avoid additives, including iron, zinc, vitamin b and vitamin d fortification or other synthetic vitamins that are often hidden in foods. Choose the best you can for the moment – less ingredients you can’t pronounce on a packet is better than scrapping label reading completely!
- Empower yourself with knowledge: Educate yourself and your family about health, and trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right for you, listen to your body.
- Consider mineral testing: Get your minerals tested to understand imbalances and start addressing them before they worsen. If you’re running on empty, mineral imbalances can exacerbate the problem.
Consider checking out the options and getting your minerals tested so you have a starting point. Remember, if you are always ‘running on empty’, this can be made worse by mineral imbalances and you are likely to continue to make the imbalances worse the longer you push through it.
Mineral imbalances don’t just fix themselves…nor do over the counter ‘quick fixes’ solve them. They are just band-aids…
Take Control of Your Health Today
Stress and mineral imbalances don’t just go away on their own, but the good news is you can start restoring balance today. If you’re ready to dive deeper into understanding how stress and mineral imbalances are affecting your body, consider getting your minerals tested with us.
Book in for a free 15 minute chat with a team member to find out about the best consultation to help you gain the clarity and insight you need to start healing from within. Don’t wait for a bigger health issue to arise—empower yourself to feel better, naturally.
Until next time!