General Adaptation Syndrome is a concept that explains the human body’s response to stress and then the process of the body returning to a state of homeostasis. The body goes through three phases during this process the first being the fight or flight phase which is called the alarm phase, the second phase is stress resistance and the final phase is stress exhaustion. What I found was so interesting was that the text explained that through proper control methods one can control their stress response and reaction, I’ve suffered from social anxiety for much of my life and these methods were very helpful and enlightening. Kolander (2009) explains that “you can conserve your stress response in the same way that you conserve electricity in your home: the less you use, the less you pay for later.” The issue arises when the body is under constant stress, that it does not have the opportunity to return to the normal state. When the body is never able to fully go through the stress resistance and the stress exhaustion phase the body becomes more at risk to conditions like migraine and heart disease.

According to the NIH (2020), migraines are “a recurring type of headache. They cause moderate to severe pain that is throbbing or pulsing. The pain is often on one side of your head.” Although studies explain that migraines have a genetic cause, the first three causes of migraine according to NIH (2020) are stress, anxiety, and hormonal changes in women. Kolander explains that the cause of migraines is not as simple as they originally thought, “traditional explanations of the cause of migraine headaches focused on the external environment or internal hormones that caused the blood vessels of the head to constrict and then dilate from built-up pressure, causing inflammation.” (Kolander, 2009, p. 127). For women who want a more holistic approach and prefer non pharmaceutical treatments, relaxation exercises and proper breathing may be effective in lessening migraines. Learning proper breathing techniques such as diaphragmatic breathing where the person alternates between contracting the diaphragm and abdominal muscles; the goal is to have deeper and longer more effective breaths.

Another condition that effects many women is heart disease, which is one of the leading causes of death to women in general. There is a correlation between stress and heart disease. The results of a study on stress related to heart disease “with 5115 participants aged 18-30 years from four different states, showed a relationship between increased job strain and increased high blood pressure.” (Kolander, 2009, p. 126). An excellent lifestyle modification could be to add yoga and medication into a woman’s exercise and health routine. Yoga is effective because it reduces stress and anxiety as well as allows the body to move around and practice different poses. Meditation is also extremely helpful to decrease stress because it brings the mind, body, and spirit into alignment. There is also evidence that stress particularly in a marriage can have a huge effect on a woman’s cardiovascular health by increasing cholesterol, obesity, and raise blood pressure. These all contribute to the increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Aside from the diseases I listed earlier in the post some other conditions that can happen because of stress include digestive disorders. I know from experience that when I am going through prolonged periods of stress I experience constant GI discomfort and muscular tension in the neck area. The textbook explains that “chronic stress may contribute to serious conditions such as depression, digestive disorders (ulcers, colitis, and IBS)” just to name a few of the potential psychosomatic disorders. (Kolander, 2009, p. 123).

References

Kolander, C., & Ballard, D. R., & Chandler, C. K. (2009). Contemporary Women’s Health Issues for Today and the Future. (5^th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2020, April 16). Migraine. MedLine Plus. https://medlineplus.gov/migraine.html