Why do we get stressed?

You’re trying to concentrate on a project that’s due in less than two hours, and that horn has been beeping outside your window for the last five minutes. Its effects are impossible to ignore. Your heart rate is up. Your jaw is tight. Your stomach roils as the clock ticks toward the deadline. Though you are normally someone who walks miles to avoid an argument, you briefly contemplate throwing a brick through the windshield of that car in self-defense.

This is what stress feels like. And while moments like these are familiar to everyone, studies suggest that today these feelings have become the rule of our collective experience, rather than the exception.
Stress causes a surge of hormones in your body. When your body detects stress, a small region in the base of the brain called the hypothalamus reacts by stimulating the body to produce hormones that include adrenaline and cortisol.

These hormones help you to deal with any threats or pressure you are facing - which is called the 'fight or flight' response.

Can exercise help?

Exercise helps to bump up the production of your brain's feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins
Regular exercise can boost self-confidence, mood and sleep quality, and lower the risk of depression
Exercise can reduce your risk of major illnesses, such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer
It can lower your risk of early death by up to 30%

Adrenaline increases your heart rate, raises your blood pressure and provides extra energy.

Cortisol, known as the stress hormone, also temporarily increases energy by triggering the release of glucose into the bloodstream, to help the person fight or run away. At the same time, other bodily functions which are not immediately needed, such as digestion, are suppressed.

The body's response to stress usually regulates itself. As your hormone levels fall, your heart and blood pressure will return to normal.

Everyone needs a certain amount of stress or pressure to live well. It's what gets you out of bed in the morning and motivates you throughout the day. However, stress becomes problematic when there's too much or too little.

Whilst a lack of stress means your body is under-stimulated, stress that is too intense or prolonged, causes your body to release stress hormones over a long period. This increases the risk of a range of physical health problems including headaches, stomach upsets and high blood pressure. It can even increase the risk of having a stroke or heart attack.

More often, stress leads to psychological problems. It can make people feel distrust, anger, anxiety and fear, which in turn can destroy relationships at home and at work. Stress also plays a key role in the development of anxiety disorders and depression.

Stressed out. Under pressure. Run down. We tend to think of stress as a bad thing—and it can be. Traumatic experiences in early childhood can destroy mental health later in life, and chronic stress has been linked to illnesses such as cancer and diabetes. But stress can be good too. It helps us navigate an unpredictable world and determine which new experiences are good, bad, or dangerous. It also primes us to respond to similar situations in the future. The key with stress is to strike a healthy balance—getting enough at the right moments, but not too much overall. If the prospect of following that advice makes you tense up, take a deep breath: Science can help.