Stress

What is Stress?

Stress has been defined as the body’s way to deal with pressure and threatful situations. Zoning out, and consciously unwinding after a tough day are the body’s way of relaxing. If your nervous system has somehow been overwhelmed by ongoing matters, certain chemicals are released in response, to tackle and prepare the body for a flight-or-fight situation. If the body’s natural response to relaxation isn’t normally triggered, it might lead to a stressful state of affairs and cause burnout.

Adapting a clean-living routine, an active lifestyle, plant-based diet, pursuing a hobby or an interest, music or meditation, a modest workout regularly, such as swimming or brisk walking, can help soothe some of the tension built up over the day. Consuming healthful foods, getting adequate sleep, reducing calories, and also being physically active helps the mind to relax and alleviate stress.

Stress Symptoms

Along with several emotional and cognitive indicators, stress also causes a lot of physical distress. Most issues are extreme opposites of the spectrum

• Extreme bowel distress - constipation or Diarrhoea
• Sleep disorder – too much or too little sleep
• Everyday discomfort, aches, and pains
• Weight fluctuations - gain or loss
• Irritability and Headaches
• Stiff jaw or neck
• Intimacy issues
• Absentmindedness, lack of concentration and other memory issues
• Anxiety, Judgemental errors, and Fatigue

There are numerous relaxation techniques one can espouse to reduce stress and calm your mind. These tricks help lessen fears and induce a sense of peace and calm. Breathing techniques, reducing alcohol and caffeine intake, diet and nutrition, having a support system, removing the source of concern, and promoting alternative coping mechanisms are a few ways one can manage stress.

Stress if not treated on time may lead to aggravation of a multitude of underlying health concerns like anxiety, insomnia, depression, digestive disorders, heart problems, reproductive issues, autoimmune disorders, memory and cognitive abilities etc.

Stress Diagnosis

Stress diagnosis is known to be complex, and medical practitioners glean information based on patient history, present concerns and life events. Several psychological techniques, elaborate questionnaires and biochemical measures may be employed to ascertain the issue. One-on-one sessions with patients discussing the matter at hand may lead to conclusive results.

Most stress is brought on by overloading the brain with problems like personal or financial loss, important life events like marriage, separation or divorce, injury or sickness, grief, death or imprisonment. Overanalysing and overthinking matters further exacerbate problems.

It’s been rightfully stated that life is a balancing act. Conditions like stress are the direct consequence of any disturbance in this balance. Stress has been mainly divided into 3 types and necessitate various management levels. 

• Acute
• Episodic Acute
• Chronic Stress

Stress Treatment and Cost in India

There are several ways that can be implemented for stress prevention, and handling anxiety triggers better. During stress situations, there are several physiological phenomena happening that turn into major disorders in future. Immunity is reduced, the muscles in the body become tensed, the digestive system slows down, sleep is hampered due to a constant state of alertness, BP and pulse rates sky-rocket etc. all of which is the body’s defence mechanism to this challenge and all of which are harmful to the overall well-being of a person in the long-run.

Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medication have proven to be useful in certain cases. Self-help therapies, Reflexology or Aromatherapy, may be used to reduce stressful thoughts and bring about some relaxation. Stress, if appropriately managed by certain lifestyle changes, may not cost you much. But, if left ignored, could bring on numerous related complications and ailments that could potentially cost you lakhs and put you in bed for the rest of your life.

Health Insurance in India

According to a study, alarming percentage of India’s population suffers from stress, but most are not comfortable talking about it. This leads to a lack of data enabling insurance companies from framing policies covering mental illness in the insurance policy. At present, only a few insurers cover mental health under the insurance policy. This is bound to change in the near future as more importance is given to mental health, and people begin to realise that mental health is as crucial as physical health. Until then, you need to select your health insurance policy carefully:

• Compare – With abundant information available online, it is essential that you compare various insurance plan and select the one that will suit your needs. Coverage could vary from one provider to another, so select a plan that offers maximum coverage.
• Check Past History – Check the claim settlement ratio of the insurance provider as it will indicate the past track record of the company. Select a company with a higher claim settlement ratio.

Other Diseases in India

Due to increased resistance to drugs, several types of diseases have been endemic in India. So much so that the range, variety and disease burden is huge. Broadly any disease can be categorized as deficiencies, infections, physiological, and hereditary or genetic.

Some of the major fatalities in our country can be attributed to the following diseases:

• Malignant Tumours
• Digestive diseases
• Respiratory disorders
• COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• Ischemic heart disease