Feeling stressed? Practice mindfulness and self-care to put your mind, and body, at ease

For most people, stress is a part of everyday life: Someone cuts you off in traffic. You're late for work. Your basement is flooded. Your spouse isn't doing their fair share of the chores again. Someone "unfriends" you on Facebook. Your boss is on the warpath. The cable technician doesn't arrive on time. The washing machine suddenly breaks. Your car has a flat tire. The baby sitter doesn't show up. The utility bill is twice as high as it should be.

Stressors like these can stretch on seemingly forever.

But when stress begins to accumulate over time, it can cause much bigger problems than momentary frustration.

Dr. Julie Sappington, who teaches mental health nursing at Southeast Missouri State University, says one of the most obvious byproducts of chronic stress is how it affects mood. People who are exposed to nearly constant stress can become irritable or short-tempered, which not only can affect their relationships, but can put them at risk for physical illnesses such as heart disease and stroke.

The reason for this, she says, is how the mind and body react in stressful situations. When stress occurs, hormones and neurotransmitters are released in a "fight or flight" reaction that's only meant to be a short-term mechanism.

Woman standing leaning against a car talking on a mobile phone

With chronic stress, however, those chemicals stick around and can damage blood vessels and suppress the immune system, among other things.

"So people are more likely to get sick," she says.

They're also more likely to gain wait around the abdomen, have trouble sleeping or suffer from anxiety, depression or foggy thinking.

Alyssa Nagel, a licensed professional counselor at Great Oak Counseling in Cape Girardeau, says one of the most common forms of stress she sees among clients are rooted in relationships, whether at home, work, school or even in cyberspace.

"I see a lot of personal interaction kinds of stressors," she says.

Whatever the reasons, stress should be managed as it arises and not allowed to become a chronic draw on energy or contentment.

To help clients find ways to mitigate stress, Nagel says she tries to help them realize why certain things trigger them to overreact. Many times, the way people react to situations is connected to traumatic experiences early in life. Sometimes, all it takes is being exposed to a certain smell to trigger a reaction.

"These things get stored differently in the brain," she says. "What trauma does is make associations that don't make sense."

In many cases, people will attempt to "zone out" or self-medicate by watching TV or engaging with social media. But that's not particularly helpful.

"You may feel like you're coping with it in the moment, but you're really just avoiding it," Nagel says.

Businesswoman with marker leaning head against wall

One way to help confront and lessen stress is by practicing mindfulness, whether it's in the form of yoga or taking a brief walk in nature. Exercise is another way to keep stress from accumulating, even on a cellular level.

"Even just little things we can do for ourselves can permeate our lives," Nagel says.

Just as stress accumulates, so, too, can small snippets of "me" time as people work to remove themselves from situations that cause the most stress.

Even preparing dinner can become a mindfulness activity if a person concentrates on the feel of chopping vegetables and enjoys the smell of the food while it's cooking.

"I cannot talk about self-care enough," Nagel says.

Woman standing leaning against a car talking on a mobile phone

But when all else fails, seeking professional help is another way to discover why stress is taking such a toll -- and to do something about it.