Exploring the effects of anxiety, stress, & trauma in the body
Do you feel exhausted constantly? Are you eating well, getting lots of sleep, exercising regularly but you still feel tired all the time? You might be experiencing emotional exhaustion. Almost always, when we suppress our feelings and emotions, they tend to manifest in many different ways. Our unaddressed anxiety, stress, and/or trauma can manifest as tension headaches, body aches, chronic pain, and chronic fatigue.
Can you take a moment to think back to what feelings or anxieties you might be suppressing right now? Are you in a stressful living situation? Did you recently experience a breakup? Are you feeling the lasting effects of the pandemic, election, or racial injustice? It’s okay if you aren’t able to put a finger on the exact “reason” or specific anxiety, stressor, or traumatic event that is being manifested outwardly. Today we’re exploring the signs, symptoms, and coping tips for emotional exhaustion on the body.
5 signs you are emotionally exhausted
1. Chronic sense of fight, flight, or freeze
Do you feel anxious more times that not? Are you always stressed out? Maybe you’re having a tough semester, experienced a death in the family, or live and chronically stressful situation, or maybe you can’t quite put your finger on it. Whatever it is, your mind is constantly active, no wonder you’re so tired! When we feel threatened, either consciously or subconsciously, our bodies go into a state of fight, flight, or freeze mode to protect itself. If your mind is constantly being triggered into overthinking, and fixating, you might be spending too much time in these trauma responses which can lead to the crash of fatigue.
2. Constant body pain/stress
Take a moment to do a body scan. Notice any feelings or energy that might be present throughout your body. Do you have head tension? Is your jaw clenched? Do you experience chronic pain in your back or shoulders? Because our bodies and minds are connected, a lot of the time, when we experience chronic pain it’s connected to a mental issue like unaddressed stress, anxiety, or trauma. Ask yourself where you’re holding this distress. Sometimes trauma experiences can stay in your body even if your mind isn’t thinking about it so remember to be gentle and non judgmental with yourself.
3. chronic fatigue
Do you still feel exhausted no matter how much rest you get? Do you sleep all day and still feel tired? Chronic fatigue or chronic tiredness is one of the core criteria for a person to be diagnosed with depression along with sadness, apathy, and loneliness. Although it isn’t necessary to label ourselves in order to heal, if you resonate with this list of criteria, we do recommend checking in with yourself and with a licensed health professional for further treatment.
4. You’ve neglected self-care
One major sign that you might be experiencing emotional exhaustion is neglecting your self care. Have you stopped making time for things you enjoy? Have you lost touch with yourself or your friends and family? Not eating well, not staying hydrated, and neglecting sleep can all lead to chronic fatigue. Try to recognize and acknowledge if you have been neglecting self-care. This can be a huge step in enacting change.
5. You’re experiencing Racial Battle fatigue(rbf)
Many Black, Indigenous, People of color experience the sociological and racial concept of racial battle fatigue. Racism, microaggressions, and marginalization can have an effect on the mind and body. As we know, when we feel threatened or live in a chronically unhealthy or unsafe environment, our bodies go into fight, flight, or freeze mode which leads to exhaustion. RBF is something that many BIPOC experience daily, especially if they have to be in an environment where there are predominantly white people like some universities, neighborhoods, or work environments.
3 tips to stay rested
1. Allow yourself to feel
When we don’t allow ourselves the space to feel all emotions, they are forced to manifest anyway. As we know, this suppression can lead to so many uncomfortable symptoms. When we allow ourselves the room to feel and have the experience, we are able to disrupt the cycle. How can we allow ourselves to feel? Try these 3 things
Shake it off (literally)! When you feel a built up of energy (negative or positive) try literally shaking, wiggling, or dancing. This allows the energy to be released away from your body and clear the discomfort.
Journal or talk to someone. If your mind is racing or worrying, try putting those words to paper, or ask to speak to a compassionate friend or licensed therapist. Unpacking or venting can feel extremely healing and help us track certain mental patterns to gain self-knowledge!
Exercise. This can be hard, especially if you’re experiencing chronic fatigue and depression, and getting out of bed to shower is a struggle in itself. Be gentle on yourself. You don’t need to run ten miles (or go for it if you want to!). Try taking a walk around your neighborhood, doing jumping jacks, or yoga. Like shaking the energy off, exercising alleviates mental, emotional, and physical symptoms of built up energy.
2. create a self-care toolbox
What would your self-care toolbox look like? Think of what makes you feel good, relaxed, and rested. This can include things like reading, writing, drawing, and making a list of people who you feel good around that you can reach out to in difficult moments. List out meals, movies, and places that comfort you. Sometimes when we find ourselves in a deep rut, it can be hard to remember the things that we love so make these lists with your future self in mind. How would you take care of them? Here are a few things from my own self-care toolbox
My trusty gratitude journal
My trustier venting journal
Taking small hikes with my dog
Asking my best friends to check in on me, and do the same for them
Calling my mom
Making soup or a hot comforting drink like spiced hot chocolate or tea
Watching movies I loved from my childhood
3. practice self-compassion and self-acceptance
We are big advocates for practicing self-compassion and self-acceptance. Remind yourself that it’s okay to feel, it’s okay to struggle, and it’s okay to not be okay. There is no rush to healing and you are exactly where you need to be in your journey. The better we are at allowing ourselves the space to feel without shame or guilt, the better we are at spotting those discomforts in the future before the get out of hand. For more on how to cultivate self-compassion and the beginning of our 4 part self-compassion series click here! Or click here to try our free 5 day self-paced self-compassion journal challenge for guidance along your journey.
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Stress is a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances. It is the body’s physical response to a real or perceived threat, demand, or danger.
Everyone experiences stress at different levels. Even when the same stressors are present, our experiences can be different. Certain groups experience higher levels of stress, for example, communities of color, LGBTQIA+, women, and parents.
Stress isn’t always harmful. For example, think about the motivation you feel to study for your next exam, or the urge to make a to-do list on a Sunday. These are positive ways that stress can help you focus and complete tasks. But when stress is frequent and intense, it can affect your overall health, resulting in a reduced quality of life.
This is why we want to help you get to the root cause of your stress, understand the ays it manifests for you, and learn preventative tools for coping with stress. Because you deserve a healthy, happy life.
Has a trip to the grocery store ever sent you home in a panic? Was it the fluorescent lights buzzing? The sticky feeling of your sneakers on the floor? Maybe it was the squeaky wheel on your grocery cart or the strong smell of fresh paint? Maybe it was the awkward small talk with an old friend you saw or the interaction you had with the cashier. Or, maybe, it was all of it.
If you’ve ever experienced being overwhelmed like this, you might be a highly sensitive person and you aren’t alone. Nearly 20% of people are highly sensitive and face the same common issues. And while highly sensitive people might experience similar challenges, let me be clear that sensitivity is in no way a character flaw.
Being a highly sensitive person is not a diagnosis, and we discourage the use of it as a negative label for yourself and others. The list we are sharing today is intended to help highly sensitive people feel validated and understand why they may feel a certain way. This list can also be a helpful tool for friends and family of highly sensitive people.
Being sensitive has a negative connotation for a lot of people, especially if they have been accused of or labeled with it in the past. We hope we can help reframe the way people see sensitivity.
In our last blog about ADHD, we discussed what ADHD is, how it typically manifests in women, information on diagnoses, and resources. Today we’re digging in deeper and sharing real, meaningful ways you can combat the symptoms of ADHD. From time management to emotional regulation and sorting paper chaos, these research-based strategies will provide you with straightforward approaches to ease stress and overwhelm so you can live a better, more satisfying life. Before we get started, let us remind you that you don’t need to do all the strategies mentioned to be productive and successful. Find what techniques resonate with you and leave the rest. Honor your humanness. It’s important to be gentle with yourself on your mental health journey.
PRACTICAL TOOLS AND INTERVENTIONS FOR ADHD MENTIONED:
You keep losing your phone, locking your keys in the car, you’re constantly late and feel emotionally overwhelmed. You feel you can never pay attention, you start a lot of projects which you never end up finishing, and you are constantly feeling burnt out. Maybe someone in your life has told you “you might have ADHD” or maybe you’ve been hearing more about the signs and symptoms on Instagram or TikTok and something resonates in you. Whatever the reason, educating yourself is the first step in getting treatment for the symptoms that may be wreaking havoc in your life.
Today we will be talking all about ADHD and women, why it goes unnoticed, common symptoms, if a diagnosis matters, and resources to help you gain control of your life.
July is BIPOC Mental Health Month. We recognize the many layers of barriers that prevent people of color from receiving the support they need. We believe that all people deserve access to health care, especially in a world where Black, Indigenous, and people of color are systemically discriminated against. In an effort to continue advocating for the Black community and other underrepresented communities, we put together this brief guide on BIPOC Mental Health Month.
Anxiety is a feeling of worry, nervousness, dread, and uneasiness typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. Social anxiety is a feeling of worry or nervousness focused mainly on social interactions. To better understand social anxiety, let’s start by learning the main components that anxiety is created and sustained by:
Physiological
Rapid heart rate
Sweaty palms
A lack of appetite
Cognitive
Anxious thoughts
Predictions
Judgments
Behavioral
Avoiding certain people, places, or situations
Difficulty saying “no” and honoring boundaries
Tendency to snap at others with little warning
Most people with anxiety experience all 3 parts together. If your professor emails you and asks to speak after class tomorrow, you might experience your heart drop, and your hands begin to sweat (Physiological). Then you might notice yourself starting to worry, and creating scenarios about what they will tell you (Cognitive). Then you might put it off by skipping your next class and finally struggling to make eye contact once you’re there (Behavioral).
When we struggle with anxiety all three components happen almost automatically. That’s why to challenge social anxiety, we must also challenge the three components. The following daily hacks utilize these components.
To witness someone who you care about suffering or struggling can be difficult. It can feel heartbreaking to know that that person could benefit from professional help and yet not see them take that step. Approaching a loved one with the, “Hey, I think you need to talk to someone.” can be a challenging task, but one that we think we can help you navigate.
While it’s not always obvious, sometimes we can be our own worst enemy. We do things like procrastinate, push people away, drink excessively, set unrealistic goals, and break our own boundaries. We don’t do these things because we’re broken or crazy, and we don’t do them because we lack willpower or discipline. Self-sabotage isn’t about being lazy, it’s about you doing your best to cope. Sabotaging yourself, or being in control of certain areas in your life might give you a false sense of control. This might feel safer rather than allowing yourself to be vulnerable to being hurt by something or someone. Give yourself some compassion for trying to cope, and survive, however that has looked like. And remember, who you are and who you have been is not who you will always be. You are always allowed to start new and change old patterns and we’re here to help along the way.
Like any journey, the journey to mental health and wellness might include detours, starts and stops, long pauses, and unexpected factors at play. Choosing to return to therapy is BIG and your dedication to your mental health doesn’t go unnoticed. Whether you haven’t spoken to your therapist in months and are feeling anxious about making the call, you’ve “finished” therapy and are considering returning, or you ghosted your therapist and feel awkward about reaching out again, this is for you. Here are 5 tips for going BACK to therapy.
Being a parent is much more than just providing clothing, a roof over your head, and food on the table. For children to develop into healthy adults, they need to feel safe and supported to grow, be known, and express themselves.
Most emotionally immature parents have no awareness of how they’ve affected their children. To be clear, we aren’t placing blame on these parents, we are seeking to understand why they are the way they are. The goal here is to help you gain new insights about your parent(s) in order to increase your own self-awareness and emotional freedom.
Nov 17, 2021
Nov 17, 2021
Stress is a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances. It is the body’s physical response to a real or perceived threat, demand, or danger.
Everyone experiences stress at different levels. Even when the same stressors are present, our experiences can be different. Certain groups experience higher levels of stress, for example, communities of color, LGBTQIA+, women, and parents.
Stress isn’t always harmful. For example, think about the motivation you feel to study for your next exam, or the urge to make a to-do list on a Sunday. These are positive ways that stress can help you focus and complete tasks. But when stress is frequent and intense, it can affect your overall health, resulting in a reduced quality of life.
This is why we want to help you get to the root cause of your stress, understand the ays it manifests for you, and learn preventative tools for coping with stress. Because you deserve a healthy, happy life.
Nov 17, 2021