Breaking Free: Overcoming Our Stress Addiction
Understanding Our Stress Addiction
Stress plays a far more substantial role in our lives than we often realize. While typically viewed as a negative force that impedes our enjoyment and productivity, research indicates that many individuals become addicted to these negative feelings, much like dependencies on cigarettes, sugar, or even alcohol and drugs. This article explores why we might be addicted to stress and provides strategies to overcome this dependency.
Chasing the Hormone High
Our psychology is such that unpleasant situations and suffering can often evoke positive emotions, leading to addiction. This isn’t solely a psychological issue, but the physiological factor is significant. Stress is a biological process essential for coping with challenging situations. Hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are released to combat external pressures, helping us manage anxiety and achieve success in high-stakes situations. They activate muscle and brain activity, turning adversities into allies for both body and mind.
This state can be likened to the euphoria induced by other addictive substances. Cigarettes, drugs, alcohol—all these work similarly to stress by causing muscle contractions. However, unlike narcotics or other physical dependencies, the effects of stress and the actions of adrenaline and cortisol linger much longer. We continue to feel fatigue, irritation, and tension as chronic stress keeps these hormones flowing, leading to problems with hair, skin, weight, heart, and digestive system. In essence, we crave our own hormones, but since we can’t control their release, we seek out stressful situations, consciously or not.
Pleasure and Sublimation
It’s not just hormones that make us repeat the same mistakes. Societal norms of discussing problems and striving for an active lifestyle make us experience stress so frequently that we start believing it’s the source of our happiness. Busyness becomes an indicator of success and self-importance, and constant use of devices intensifies this “active” life, preventing relaxation even during lunch breaks or after work. The idea of disconnecting seems insane, as we fear missing out on something important.
The constant need for money drives us to work beyond our body’s limits. The fear of dealing with ourselves on a deeper level makes us avoid free time. Constantly working and achieving goals is not only a path to success but also an excuse to avoid dealing with ourselves. In 2014, scientists conducted an experiment where participants were asked to spend time alone. Most participants felt uncomfortable because they had to be alone with their thoughts for more than 6-15 minutes.
How to Stop Suffering and Become Happier
Addiction to stress arises from many unresolved internal issues. While we hide behind a mass of important tasks, our bodies desperately need rest. The cure for this harmful lifestyle is simple—rest. Here are a few tips on what you can do:
- Turn off gadgets at least in the evening: Try not to use gadgets in the evenings to avoid getting involved in work or rechecking everything in your news feed. It’s better to turn on a TV series and just relax. Don’t allow yourself to respond to business emails or solve any other important matters after sunset—everything important can wait until morning.
- Let go of complicated friends: People who are often referred to as “toxic” are not a myth but a very real scenario. Such people have a way of attracting us because subconsciously we strive to defeat them, fix them, or at least overcome the difficulties that fate has thrown our way. An evening spent at home in peace and quiet is much more productive than communicating with a person who can deprive you of balance.
- Abstract yourself: Psychologists recommend abstraction as an active method of dealing with problems. If you start thinking about them in the third person, it will be much easier for you not to identify yourself with them, which will allow you to step away if needed. Such healthy procrastination can help you rest.
For further reading, you can visit American Psychological Association.
