Every day we deal with multiple levels of stress. I do think post COVID, there's a lot more stress than we ever had before. Current research suggests that between 75 and 90% of all doctor visits today are  related to stress related illnesses. Elevated stress levels have been linked to many common health problems today which include asthma, diabetes, heart disease and obesity heart disease to name a few. So where does all this stress come from? There are three different types of stress and each one affects our body in a different way.

Most people know and have had physical stress. This type of stress causes aches, pains and general stiffness. This may be caused from a recent injury or trauma, like a car accident, a slip or fall or maybe just a job you have a continuous repetitive motion that you do all day. This repetitiveness that you do every day, l over and over again on a regular basis, like putting together the same part, sitting at the computer or answering the phone all day. What occurs is that overtime, these continuous and repetitive activities and motions, start to cause a little wear and stress on the joints in the muscles leading to pain and stiffness. A few examples of physical stress include neck and back pain, headache and restricted motion/stiffness to name a few. The simplest way to reduce his physical stress is to change and modify these activities in your life regularly. Properly set up ergonomic computer station at work or at home. Poor ergonomics can be one of the major causes of neck pain and headaches in the home or office workplace Another one is sleeping in a bad position like on your stomach or on the couch. Bad sleep habits cause either a “kink” in your neck or a muscle spasm that can lead to a severe morning of neck pain or a even a headache that may not go away.

Second one is emotional stress. Stress affects our minds and our bodies even more. When we have lack of work, financial stress, family dynamics or a higher workload that we may not have options to change these stressors have an effect on her body. Many of the symptoms of high emotional stress include depression, anxiety, frustration, irritability, inability to sleep and mood swings to name a few. There are many ways to deal with emotional stress. I personally use regular/daily exercise that helps improve stress levels, combat depression, improve quality of sleep and reduce overall tension in the body. Daily Meditation has been shown to  reduce these emotional stressors where you can learn to clear your mind and focus on what may be giving you the stress in your life. Finally, don't forget to talk to someone about how you may feel. Verbalizing can help reduce stress and keep you from getting it all noted in bottle that. One of the things that I've seen is that with COVID, we've been by ourselves for way too long and it's truly important to talk to friends, family and a counselor when necessary.

Chemical stress this one we don't really think about a lot. It's something that we're all dealing with many different levels. These chemical stresses change how our body works and functions. We are what we eat, breathe, medicate and all of these chemicals have a effect on our body. I have been vegetarian for the majority of my life, and I know that eating a healthy diet lowers these chemical levels. A poor diet not only stress out your body but make stress even worse. Avoiding sugar, refined grains and processed foods will make you think, sleep and perform better and all activities in your life. I've always had a good rule of thumb is to stick to the outside of your grocery store not the inside. Try to avoid things that are in a bag or box since these are very processed foods why not just eat plants as opposed to eat food that is from a factory or plant.

Lastly, we all know that these physical, emotional and chemical stressors affect your body and can be dramatic on the nervous system. Your nervous system controls all glands, organs and tissues in the body. These stressors can misalign your spine causing pain and dysfunction in your system. A chiropractor will consult, examine, X-ray and check your spine for these spinal misalignments. Through a very proper and specific chiropractic adjustment your body will work and function at a better even with these different stressors in your body. Stress is a part of our daily lifestyle but a properly aligned spine will help you to deal with these three stressors more efficiently, live a healthier and happier lifestyle. Thanks for reading Dr. Joe