Feeling constantly tired and don't know why? How many of the below do you experience? 

Despite it’s prevalence, being constantly tired is not normal. Always being tired, even with that extra cup of coffee, is an indication that your body needs to rest. 

Can’t remember where you left your keys? Having trouble remembering all the important details from that meeting? Chronic stress causes inflammation and depletion of key nutrients needed for good brain functioning. 

Don’t find yourself having that extra bounce in your step? Not looking forward to things like you used to? Chronic stress depletes energy as well as our motivation molecule, dopamine.

Find yourself getting mad at the smallest things that never used to upset you? There is no nothing wrong with your personality, rather, this is could just be a consequence of chronic stress on your body. 

If you find yourself constantly catching every virus that goes around, it could be the effects of the chronic stress. Stress suppresses the immune system, leaving us more vulnerable to outside invaders.

Cortisol, our main stress hormone, main role in the body is to increase blood sugar by breaking down fat, muscle and sugar in the body. The fat however comes from the arms and legs, not the midsection. Cortisol actually increases the amount of fat in the midsection, known as visceral at, and this is the most dangerous kind of fat for our health.

Find yourself wanting to sleep more than have sex? In times of stress, our body prioritizes survival over reproduction. What good is having a high sex drive if a tiger is running after you? As long as the body senses danger (which is whenever you are stressed) it will decrease everything that has to do with sex and fertility to save the resources for survival, like fighting or running away. This is why many couples have trouble conceiving when they are trying too hard, but when they let go of the outcome, get pregnant. 

As you can see, these symptoms are far reaching and very unpleasant. That’s why it is very important that we take action in preventing it and healing ourselves. Below you can find some powerful actions to get you started.

Make sure you that you get 7-8 hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep per night. The usual recommended time is between 10pm-6am, however differences exist based on individuals’ genetics, time-zones and schedules: play around with the times that best suit you.

Make sure you are keeping your blood sugar stable. This is one of the biggest stressors in our society. Whenever you eat a food that it too high in sugar, you will have a steep drop in blood sugar soon after, increasing the amount of stress hormone released. To prevent this, make sure to eat high a quality source of protein with each meal, cut out foods that contain sugar, and replace them with fibre containing foods like sweet potatoes or vegetables. 

Shift your mindset. Mental/emotional stress is dependent on our interpretation of events, and is not necessarily always accurate. Make sure to always look at the positive side of every event (every event has one). There are many effective tools to help you, such as journalling, practising gratitude, listening to motivation tapes, or meditating. Find the one that resonances with you and practise it daily. 

Surround yourself with positive people. There is nothing like having a great positive interaction with friends and family. The benefits are felt long after, and even in the memories of these interactions. It’s important to limit your exposure to negative energy vampires and increase your association with positive people. Remember, you are the average of the 5 people you hang out with. 

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