In a world that demands ever more performance, it is hard to escape stress and its consequences. While stress is sometimes necessary to move forward and can be good for productivity, in large doses it can have harmful effects on health. Fortunately, there are ways to keep stress under better control and to avoid its unwelcome consequences.
What happens when we are stressed?
Stress is a physiological response to a dangerous situation or to a need to push ourselves to reach a goal. This response is beneficial in that it triggers a fight mechanism to get us out of a perilous situation.
Your body responds by releasing hormones that help you prepare for, or face, a threat. Your heart rate speeds up and your blood pressure rises, in order to bring more oxygen and glucose to your muscles.
This response was vital for early humans, helping them survive in a hostile environment where nature was not yet tamed as it is today. In today’s urban jungle, this ability to react quickly is still with us and helps us in very different situations.
The causes of stress
The causes of stress are of course many, and everyone reacts differently, but in general a few stress-inducing situations can be identified:
- work overload
- job loss
- family upheaval (marriage, divorce, a new baby, etc.)
- traumatic events
- moving house
- moving abroad
The impact on your health
A little stress is often necessary, as a driver of your effectiveness. It lets you raise your performance when it really matters — for an important exam or a work meeting, say. But too much stress for too long is harmful to your health, both physically and psychologically:
PHYSICAL CONSEQUENCES:
- Heart disease
- Weight problems
- Sleep disorders
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES:
- Irritability
- Inability to concentrate
- Depression
The stress of expats
Beyond work, school or family stress, expats also face culture shock. Moving abroad forces you to adapt quickly to new rules and to profound changes in your everyday life.
The stress of the move is already a shock, but you then have to cope with the psychological and emotional shock of arriving in a country that is often unfamiliar. When you arrive abroad as an expat, everything is new — from the language to the climate, from social rules to the weather — and the list can be a long one.
This whole process is called culture shock, and it goes through several phases:
1. The “honeymoon”: you are excited and highly motivated, and every new experience is seen in a positive light.
2. Frustration: after a while, the excitement of the early days has faded and what seemed exceptional at first becomes ordinary. You start to idealise your home country and to feel that everything in your host country is going wrong.
3. Adjustment: eventually, you begin to accept the differences and to feel that things are not so bad after all. You even start to appreciate some of the cultural differences.
4. Optimisation: this is the point where you are completely in tune with the new culture and feel almost as at ease as with your own.
Managing culture shock
Managing culture shock means doing what you can to adapt to the culture of your host country. To avoid getting stuck at the “frustration” stage and to move as quickly as possible towards “optimisation”, here are a few tips:
What to do about stress
Identify the causes
There are many things you can do to fight stress. The first is to identify its causes — by keeping a journal, for example. By noting the situations in which you feel stressed, it is then easy to go back over your notes and calmly work out how to handle those situations.
Get organised
You will get more done, and feel less stressed, if you plan a schedule that prioritises your tasks. You need to know how to say no, and to put certain tasks ahead of others according to their importance.
Exercise
Your physical health affects your state of mind. If you think you are too busy, here are some easy everyday physical activities: walking instead of taking the car or public transport, exercising in a group to stay motivated, walking the dog, taking the stairs rather than the lift, and so on. Bear in mind that a little is better than nothing — and that more is better!
Sleep well
If you do not sleep enough, the short-term effects are irritability and an inability to cope with stress. In the long term, though, lack of sleep increases the likelihood of depression, heart disease and diabetes, and worsens your general health.
Most adults need eight hours of sleep a night to feel their best. However, if you feel tired or restless during the day, you need more! Try going to bed even just half an hour earlier — the effects can be remarkable.
Tips and tricks for sleeping better:
Eat better
Diet is proven to play a leading role in our day-to-day health. Cook your own meals: they will contain less sugar, salt and fat than ready meals or restaurant food.
How can I insure my health against stress?
AzurExpat policies include cover for psychological treatment, whether as an inpatient or through specialist consultations. Some of our partners also provide a psychological support service. Do get in touch for more information.
