What is stress? Stress is that tension caused when our response to what is happening in a given moment ignites our "flight or fight" mechanism to one degree or another. Stress can be useful in small, managed doses. For example, the "stress" of seeing the finish line may cause an athlete to experience a burst of speed in the race for the finish. However, undue stress is stress above and beyond that which we were created to endure. It occurs when we tax our bodies beyond their normal limits on a continual basis. Undue stress occurs when we work too much, sleep too little, struggle with family, work and social obligations, deprive our body of needed nutrients or experience injuries.

When we experience stress, the adrenal glands release cortisol, a hormone designed to help our body utilize proteins, carbohydrates and fats to produce the energy to respond to whatever is causing the stress. Normally, cortisol levels are higher in the morning and diminish during the day allowing us to rest in the evening. However, when our stress continues through the day, demanding increased amounts of cortisol, adrenal exhaustion and unnaturally high levels of cortisol can result in sleeplessness, blood sugar irregularities, high blood pressure, fat accumulation, exhaustion and more.⁴

In one way or another, everyone experiences stress. And in the 21st century, stress levels seem to be rising. Why? Perhaps the greatest cause of accumulated stress is the 24/7 lifestyle. In agrarian times, we got up with the sun and went to bed with the sun. Although stresses still occurred, our body and mind had time to rejuvenate. Today, the sun goes down, we turn the lights on and continue to push late into the evening. Our bodies may cry for rest and sleep, but our tyrannical schedule demands more output.

There are many choices we can make to reduce stress, but for most of us those choices will take time and effort to implement. We need relief right now to break the vicious stress/sleeplessness cycle. ^AIMComposure^® can help.