General nervous system regulation, wellbeing and prevention of chronic stress:

⦿ Prioritising quality sleep (sleep blog HERE) - This includes regulating the circadian rhythm by aiming for consistent sleep and wake times AND viewing sunlight in the morning and afternoon.

⦿Practicing mindfulness, presence and gratitude. (12)

⦿Practicing regular nervous system regulating activities - Breathwork/meditation, somatic exercises, stillness, journaling, rest.

⦿Reducing screen time, particularly around sleep and wake. (13, 14)

⦿Spending time in nature regularly - This one is CLINICALLY proven to lower cortisol. (15)

⦿Completing regular physical activity - This can help regulate the stress response within the body and build resilience. (11)

⦿Having purpose outside of achievement and being busy - hobbies, relationships, joy.

⦿Having strong boundaries with external stimulation - work time, social time, chores.

⦿ Understanding your personal stress triggers and experimenting with management strategies to find what works best for you.

If you are feeling overwhelmed with stress or anxiety and need help, Beyond Blue have amazing services for 24/7 counselling. You can even chat to a counsellor online if that is more comfortable, or connect with others via their online forums.

I truly hope that this article was interesting enough to keep you around until the end. Let's be real, hustle culture is totally 2019 and Regulated Nervous System Girl Energy is the future (catchy, I know). If you have any thoughts on this article or other health and wellness topics, please get in touch via this website or social pages - I'd love to know your hot takes.

Dysregulation = abnormality in the control of a system or process, i.e. over/underactive nervous system response, numbness or hypersensitivity.

Abnormality in the control of a system or process (e.g. over/underactive nervous system response)

Evidence-Based Stress Management

Okay so how are we going to manage both the every day "small" stressors and the big hitters?

Acute Stress Management (in the moment):

⦿ Calming breathwork techniques. My favourite, and unofficially dubbed as the most efficient by Dr/King Huberman, is the physiological sigh. Check out this 2 minute video for a demo.

⦿ Somatic movements - Physical exercises or movements practiced consciously with the intention of connecting to the body or releasing stored emotions. Reach out to me HERE or check out our instagram/tiktok for more on this. Start with shaking your body to a song!

Chronic Stress (or more intense instances of stress):

It is important to understand the stress cycle - check out the diagram below. It essentially demonstrates that completing the cycle of the stress response is the key to regulating your nervous system and preventing burnout. Ways you can complete this cycle are (10):

⦿ Physical activity - In the fight or flight response, our body releases hormones and prepares our systems for physical movement (fighting or fleeing). Exercise is a great way to imitate this natural response and utilise the excess hormones priming us for activity.

⦿ Emotional release (in any form) - Laughing, crying, screaming, punching a pillow.

⦿ Creativity - inducing your flow state and utilising your creative brain. Our survival response has no need for creativity, so engaging in a creative activity that is enjoyable can help to calm our system & trigger our parasympathetic response.

⦿ Physical affection - A 20-second hug from yourself, a loved one or pet will do the trick. You can also try providing yourself with gentle touches, squeezes or pats. (11)

⦿ Deep breathing and/or muscle relaxation - Belly breaths, box breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, 4-7-8 breath.

⦿ Rest & sleep.

Are you chronically stressed?

Hopefully I haven't demonised stress too much so far. After all, stress is inevitable and necessary to our growth, sense of purpose and safety. As such, stress management techniques are important for everyone to have in their tool belt. But some of us may be stuck in a chronic stress cycle that is affecting our long-term health and wellbeing, potentially leaving our nervous system in an all-but-constant state of dysregulation. Some signs you may be chronically stressed are:

⦿ You would say that you are worried most of the time

⦿ Feeling irritable or agitated often

⦿ You feel constantly on the verge of crying

⦿ You feel that your reactions are irrational to the stimulus presented 

⦿ You struggle with procrastination

⦿ Feeling detached from your body

⦿ Physical health issues that are not responding to treatment

⦿ Reduced healing capacity (prolonged sickness or delayed recovery from injury/illness)

⦿ Sleep issues

⦿ Headaches

⦿ Concentration issues

⦿ Desire to frequently use substances to numb feelings

⦿ Appetite issues

⦿ Unexplained stomach/digestive issues

Please note that if you have any of the above symptoms, it does not necessarily mean that you have a chronic stress issue. However, it could be worth trying out some of the recommendations at the bottom of this article and consulting with a professional to discuss any concerns.

Why does this matter? Well, the long-term implications of chronic stress can be detrimental to health - including compromised immune system/organ function and tissue damage. BUT, don't let that scare you - there are solutions and it is never too late to start working on reducing your stress!

Check out the video here

*Masculine: Think doing, active, productive, structure, discipline

Research for my fellow geeks:

• World Health Organisation (WHO) on Stress (2023)

• Physiology and the Stress Reaction by B Chu & colleagues (updated 2024)

• The difference between stress and anxiety by the American Psychological Association (2024)

• The brain in stress and adaptation by McEwen & Gianaros (2010)

• Harvard Medical School Stress Response article (2024)

• Stress affects on the body by American Psychological Association (updated 2023)

• The Gallop State of the Global Workplace 2024 report

• Forbes 2024 Stress Statistics

• Long working hours research by WHO (2021)

• Stress Cycle article by Psych Central (updated 2022)

• Physical affection to calm the nervous system by M Eckstein & colleagues (2020)

• Stress reduction interventions article by C Regehr & colleagues (2013)

• Screen media activity and mental health by Yale School of Medicine (2023)

• Screen time and health by V S Nackshine & colleagues (2022)

• Nature and stress by MC R Hunter & colleagues (2019)

• Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) Stress & Trauma Report (updated 2024)

• World Economic Forum article on the way stress impacts our physical health (2024)

• Research on the link between stress and physical illness (2008)

Adrenaline & Cortisol = Help your body respond to stress or danger

Consult with a professional if you want to discuss stress & anxiety in more depth.

Definitely consult with a mental health professional if you want to discuss the differences between stress & anxiety in more depth.

Acknowledging that the updated response includes freeze & fawn as well!

*If you are NOT a human being on Earth, please reach out to me ASAP - I'd love to connect <3

✷SCIENCE OF HER ✷ BLOG ✷ SCIENCE OF HER ✷ BLOG ✷ SCIENCE OF HER ✷ BLOG ✷

✷SCIENCE OF HER ✷ BLOG ✷ 

Hustle Culture

Rise and grind, girl-boss! It's time to eat, sleep, work, repeat because nothing worth having comes easy. Right?

I think it is necessary to look at why, as a society, we have high, and sometimes debilitating, levels of stress. AND why high stress may be seen as normal or (annoyingly) productive. Enter, Hustle Culture. In this case, hustling refers to hard work, and hustle culture is a way of life that prioritises work and "productivity" over rest and balance; where achievement (often in status or finances) is seen as successful and relaxation, sometimes even enjoyment, is seen as weak. When and why hustle culture rose in popularity is unclear. Potentially in the technology and entrepreneurial boom in the 90's and 2000's. Potentially with the idolisation of business people such as Gary Vee and Elon Musk. And also potentially with the rise of social media and comparison of lifestyles online.

However you slice it, hustle culture exists to celebrate an inherently masculine (read: patriarchal) ideal and I can't help but wonder who decided what is considered "productive" and what is lazy. If we know that overworking can lead to burnout and even death (9), why is it lazy to take care of our health and wellbeing? I saw an interview recently with the singer Aurora where she spoke about the dichotomy between sleeping being perceived as lazy, but going to bed early to prioritise sleep being perceived as productive. I do think that the collective attitude is slowly changing around hustle culture and am excited to see how our society adapts to this change in culture. 

All of this is not to say that we shouldn't work hard or never push ourselves, but maybe we would be a happier species if we created a culture where joy is prioritised over a need to be perceived as successful through a measure of burnout. A society that has built their identity around their values, qualities and personality over their status as a busy person. And, most of all, a world where stress management is valued and invested in because it is understood as integral to longevity and enjoyment of our time on Earth.

Could you describe yourself without naming your job title or achievements?

The Science of Stress

As much as I hate to be the girl that spits out dictionary definitions at the start of an article, I want to ensure that the understanding of stress is clear. According to WHO, stress is "a state of worry or mental tension caused by a difficult situation" (1). Of course, a "difficult situation" is a little unclear, but it is understood that a stress response is elicited by any physical or psychological stimulus that disrupts bodily balance, or homeostasis (2). Some people use the words stress and anxiety interchangeably, but it is important to note that these are different; while stress refers to a state of being and physiological reaction in response to a stimulus (usually external), anxiety is a feeling of persistent and/or excessive worry that does not go away even in the absence of a stressor (3).

So what's going on in our body when we are stressed? Simply put, our brain receives information from our senses regarding our situation or surroundings. That information is analysed and, if found to be dangerous by our amygdala, prompts a distress signal to be sent out to our hypothalamus. This is where our sympathetic nervous system is triggered - our 'fight or flight' system - and our hormones (think adrenaline & cortisol) are sent out to provide us with enough energy to fight or flee the dangerous situation. All systems within the body are affected by this response including the cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, reproductive, respiratory and endocrine systems. After the initial reaction, either our parasympathetic system can step in as our brakes and dampen the response, or, if the brain continues to perceive our situation as dangerous, another cascade of hormones are released to keep us on high alert (4, 5, 6). Intense, right?

Now, keep in mind that stress is a helpful and necessary reaction with the purpose of keeping us safe. It is long-term dysregulation (chronic stress) that can have negative impacts on our health. Which, according to research done by Gallup (7, 8), is a relatively large proportion of us; 41% of adults surveyed reporting experiencing "a lot" of stress and 27% of adults (in the US) reporting feeling so stressed that they could not physically function on most days.

Did I say 'stress' too many times in the title? It's starting to sound funny to me now. Actually, it's losing all meaning. Stress. Stress. Okay, now this is making me stressed.

According to my research, if you are a human being on Earth, there is a good chance that you are experiencing stress on the regular. This article walks through the physiology of stress, key indicators that your stress levels are negatively impacting your wellbeing and actionable, evidence-based management strategies for stress. We will also look at the modern culture that impacts on our perception of stress. And not to flex, but I don't use the caveman/tiger reference EVEN ONCE.