You might be surprised to realize just how many impacts your emotional state can have on your physical health. From digestive issues to aches and pains to high blood pressure, your body responds to emotional and psychological stress.
This spring, don’t get trapped in a negative cycle of emotional stress and physical pain. With psychological support and counseling, you can better manage stresses and relieve physical symptoms.
Here’s what the compassionate and experienced experts at Nugent Family Counseling want their patients to know about the connection between the mind, the emotions, and the body. Our team of therapists, led by founder Dr. Geoff Nugent, serves patients in San Jose, California, Los Gatos, California, and Reno, Nevada.
The chemical components of stress
Your body responds to stress by preparing to fight, flee, or freeze. Hormones like cortisol help your physical systems ramp up quickly in stressful situations.
Stress can come from many sources in your life. Your stress could be chronic, related to a difficult, long-term medical condition, or personal or professional situation. Or, your life circumstances right now might be putting you under unusual amounts of stress.
When the stresses you’re dealing with don’t require you to run or fight, but handle situations calmly, the physical effects of your biological stress responses can become a source of trouble, instead. You might tense muscles in your back, neck, jaw, legs, or groin, causing muscle aches and pains. Clenching your jaw can have negative consequences for your dental health, as well.
Stress can wreak havoc on healthy sleep habits, and cause eating irregularities, nausea, and digestive discomfort. Dealing with the physical consequences of stress can become stressful in and of itself. And, some consequences of stress, like an increased risk of high blood pressure, can come with serious and even life-threatening complications.
Healing your emotions and body
When you or a loved one are struggling with physical problems as a result of stress, it’s time to seek expert care and support through Nugent Family Counseling. Due to the close connection between your mind and your body, you benefit from working holistically with the team at Nugent Family Counseling to optimize your whole-body health and wellness, including your mental health.
Depending on your diagnosis and symptoms, you could benefit from treatments and therapies including:
- Psychotherapy or counseling to help you cope with underlying mental health conditions
- Expert guidance in better stress management and stress reduction techniques
- Physical disciplines like yoga that stretch, strengthen, and restore your body in addition to clearing your mind
- Techniques like aromatherapy, hypnosis, microcurrent electrical therapy, and neurofeedback that can address symptoms of chronic stress
To start your personalized stress treatment plan with a provider at Nugent Family Counseling Center, make an appointment now. You can book over the phone, or request your appointment online today.