6 Myths about Stress

1. Everyone has the same feeling and symptoms of the stress.

What is stressful for me may or may not be stressful for you; each of us responds to stress in different way. Sometimes you can find similarities in stress response between yourself and people in your close proximity, most probably because you are in same social circle, have had similar childhood, etc. however, it is not the same.

2. Stress is bad for you

Stress is a built in mechanism that protects us from being hurt and stress has its own built in distress mechanism, human connection.

Stress is keeping us alert, focused, it is preparing our body and mind for the action; we can think faster, solve problems, run and swim faster, etc.  Chronic underlying stress, worrying stress and stress that doesn't have a meaning is  stress that can hurt us or even kill us. The issue, really, is how to manage it because managing stress makes us productive and happy.

3. You cant do anything about stress because its everywhere around you

Not really. Stress is everywhere and we constantly go in and out of stressful situations, however you can do a lot about it, learn how to manage it; learn how to prioritise, find a meaning in what you do, learn how to deal with worries, find inner confidence, build self-esteem...

4. The most popular techniques for reducing stress are the best ones.

Again, not really. There is not the technique that helps everyone to manage stress, we are all different and because we all react to  stress in a different ways and we all experience different causes of stress so to find the best way to manage your stress the best is to either try as many techniques as you needs until you find the best one  or simply find a good stress management specialist that can help you learn more about your own personal stress and show you how you can manage it.

5. No symptoms, no stress.

Symptoms are often camouflaged  with medication, alcohol, food, etc and you may not recognise the signals you need in order to make the change or start managing stress in a better way and avoid physical and psychological complications.

6. Only major symptoms of stress require attention.

There is no 'minor' or 'major' symptoms of stress; any symptom you notice or people around you is as equally important: frequent headaches, increased eating of drinking, irritability, anger, unexplained stomach aches and pains, etc. Any symptom is a warning that you need to acknowledge and deal with in order to avoid complications.