More Answers... (04/07/26 Newsletter): Chronic Stress
Hi Everyone,
Here are More Answers... to help you head into the work week. Remember, you can see previous newsletters at askchrista.com/MoreAnswers.
Today’s topic: Chronic Stress
Chronic stress feels unrelenting and overwhelming. By definition, it's also a long-term, always-present experience.
And yet, how many of us think about the state of mind we're in where "chronic stress" is a term we use to describe such ever-present stress?
Chronic Stress Is Long Term and Invasive
In the last 30 years, we've seen more wars, more recessions, more layoffs, more losses than gains, and more hard times than good than at least two generations have seen.
It used to be that in hard times, people would band together. When faced with uncertainty, people would work to find where certainty can guide. When faced with doubts, people would seek answers and viable solutions to cast light on doubts and bring confidence into the mix.
Some might say that's not the world we live in today, but I say it's a fool's errand to look at the world as a reflection of what we're capable of or how we should feel about stress.
In truth: there are a lot of GOOD things, too-- it's just that we don't SEE that as present in the social media and individualized, partisan news reels these days. But look outside our doors and focus on local energy and kindness: we see neighbors helping each other.
We see policies supporting good people. We see how our stress can be managed at that local level, and maybe find some relief because we know our neighbors, our friends, and those who care about and for us have each others' best interests in mind.
And in heart.
And that is the antidote to chronic stress.
When Stress Feels Like a Lifestyle
It's easy to think that the stress will never let up (that's where the "chronic" comes into play), but we don't have to live or work that way.
The biggest issue we all have with chronic stress is how it becomes a long-term bedfellow. Stress no longer seems the addition because of uncertainty or risk, but a lifestyle. People's response to stress becomes the coping mechanisms instead of just an emotion or response to stress.
To some extent, chronic stress risks a reshaping of our personality, and it certainly shifts our internal clocks and pendulums to react to different things in different ways.
This week, I'm asking you to be true to yourself: what kind of stress are you dealing with? Is it short-term? Or has it become chronic? Do you feel like there will ever be a time when you aren't stressed out? Or is your stress something you believe will dissipate with the next inflection or milestone?
The biggest issue I have with chronic stress is that over time, it can feel like a part of who we are. Research supports that prolonged stress exposure can alter how we think, feel, and respond, affecting both our emotional patterns and our physical systems (McEwen, 1998; McEwen & Morrison, 2013).
But we don't need research to tell us that, right?
A Path Forward
If you feel like your stress is more chronic than you'd like it to be, and that your coping mechanism has become part of your personality (at worst) or your professional brand (maybe also at worst), then consider this:
Research on recovery and resilience shows that even in sustained periods of stress, people can restore balance through thoughtful changes in behavior, environment, and social connection (Sonnentag & Fritz, 2015).
And that means you can still make changes to become healthier and endeavor to at least reduce SOME of your stress and/or manage it differently. You don't have to go big, you just have to start.
And yes, at this point (at the most of chronic stress), a lot of it probably feels like a lifestyle, but think about what you want to change and how to do so. Ask some questions:
What kind of stress am I dealing with right now?
Is it short-term, tied to something specific? Or has it become something that feels constant?
Do I believe it will pass, or does it feel like it is here to stay (or has been around forever)?
Then enlist the help of one work colleague and one personal friend, and begin the journey to break some stress inertia and move out of that "chronic stress" feeling.
The stress here in the USA has been unrelenting for over 20 years, so if you are nodding thinking, "yeah, this is TOTALLLLLY ME!," know that you aren't alone.
Then do something to help yourself out...
Booster for the Week!
Laugh. Laugh often, but at least once a week. Find a show, a movie, a book, a writer, then... just... laugh.
During times of chronic stress, we bottle up and let go of the more intensive, perhaps toxic, and often heavier emotions... but you know what instantly gets all of that out?
Yup... laughing.
So the Booster for this week is you to you, but some old faithfuls include movies from the 80s (some of the best comedy), smart comics like Nate Bargatze, and a good blooper reel... ("PIVOT!!!!")
Enjoy!!
With kindness,
Christa
(Helpful? Interesting? Please feel free to forward and invite others to subscribe at askchrista.com/newsletter.)
References
McEwen, B. S. (1998). Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators. New England Journal of Medicine, 338(3), 171–179. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM199801153380307
McEwen, B. S., & Morrison, J. H. (2013). The brain on stress: Vulnerability and plasticity of the prefrontal cortex over the life course. Neuron, 79(1), 16–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2013.06.028
Sonnentag, S., & Fritz, C. (2015). Recovery from job stress: The stressor-detachment model as an integrative framework. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(S1), S72–S103. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.1924
(remember: most public libraries in the USA offer access to academic papers; however, if yours does not, then Google these papers to see where they are listed, how you can learn more about them, and how you can find similar papers to learn more about conflict management and conflict resolution in the workplace)
