Stress Symptoms
On those occasions when we don't manage our stress well, our bodies experience the fight or flight response over and over, and we begin to experience a variety of symptoms. Look at the following list, and check those that pertain to you.
Physical Symptoms
- Headaches
- Sleep disorders (insomnia, over-sleeping, early morning awakening, restlessness at night, nightmares)
- Back pain (especially lower back pain and neck pain)
- Clenching the jaws or grinding the teeth (TMJ Syndrome)
- Constipation
- Diarrhea and colitis (irritable bowel syndrome)
- Skin rashes
- Muscle aching (especially in the neck, shoulders, at the back of the head)
- Indigestion or ulcers
- Hypertension
- Excessive perspiration
- Appetite change (either increase or decrease)
- Fatigue or loss of energy (feeling lethargic)
- Increase in accidents
- Increase in outbreak of herpes
- Feeling of breathlessness or hyperventilating
Emotional Symptoms
- Anxiety or chronic worrying
- Depression or crying easily
- Mood swings (from feeling very high to very low)
- Irritability
- Nervousness
- Easily angered
- Experiencing a feeling of low self-esteem or feelings of insecurity
- Preoccupation with health (worrying that one has a major disease)
- Angry outbursts
- Feelings of aggression or hostility
- Feeling emotionally drained or burned out
- Panicky feelings
Intellectual Symptoms
- Difficulty concentrating and focusing
- Difficulty making decisions
- Forgetfulness
- Feeling of confusion
- Poor memory and recall
- Excessive daydreaming
- Preoccupation with a single thought or idea
- Loss of sense of humor
- Decreased productivity
- Lowered quality of work
- Increased number of errors
Interpersonal Symptoms
- Fairly consistently blaming others for your problems
- Finding it difficult to trust other people
- Finding yourself always late for appointments or actually missing them
- Finding fault in everything around you or verbally attacking others
- Feeling guilty a good bit of the time
- Having an overly defensive attitude
- Being passive-aggressive and not speaking to or talking with other people
- Trying to get all your needs met through another person
- Trying to please everyone all the time (trying to keep everybody happy)
