Regulating Stress Through Modifiable Life Style Factors & Empirically Validated Treatment Strategies
Updated: January, 2021
By: Eve Coberly, M.S., M.A.
Reviewed: Zack Butterfield, CMHC, BCN
In Part II, we learned that ongoing stress can eventually cause a person to develop glucocorticoid resistance (GCR); the body’s resistance to the stress hormone cortisol due to ongoing activation of their stress response system/HPA-axis (a.k.a. their danger brain) (Snipes, 2019). Although a dysregulated stress response cause all sorts of problems, the good news is that it can be treated.
This final Part III article of the Autonomic Nervous System and Mental Health series, explores four major areas on how a person can help reduce their stress so their HPA axis can begin to relax, and eventually find its way back to a state of homeostatic balance (Snipes, 2019).
1. Getting In Touch With The Body
The first, and most way to begin healing the stress response system is to address any and all physical health needs (Snipes 2019; Snipes, 2020; Robinson, 2014; American Psychiatric Association, 2013). As mentioned throughout this article series, the physical body is THE primary vehicle in which we humans live
out our lives. Therefore, making sure that we take good care of our body throughout life is top priority.
The first recommendation when it comes to the body is to visit with a primary care provider and get an updated physical/medical exam (Morrison, 2014; American Psychological Association, 2013). Getting a physical can help identify any possible underlying physical health conditions that might be triggering a person’s danger brain, as well as help identify any other specific physical health needs (e.g., getting blood work may show low vitamin D levels which has been linked to depression) (Robinson, 2014; Tengeler et al., 2018).
In addition to getting an updated physical, making sure a person is eating all the right foods is also vital. Unfortunately, the American western diet is almost completely out of sync with what the human body actually needs (Moore et al., 2018; Melzier et al., 2021). In addition, food availability and accessibility is extremely high in the United States (i..e, 24/7 convince stores, fast-food restaurants, etc). This constant availability of food in the US can make it easer for a person to eat and/or snack all day. Although the human body needs a certain amount of food and water to survive, it does not need a constant influx of food, and in doing so, can cause the body to work overtime.
Not only that, but many of the foods that are offered by mainline US restaurants, fast-food joints, and convince stores can be extremely high in simple carbohydrates and sugar; macronutrients that can not only worsen a dysregulated stress response, but they can also drastically increase the body’s hormone insulin, which if found in high amounts over a long period of time, can cause a person to become insulin resistant (IR); another dysfunctional body state that has also been empirically linked to a number of both mental and physical diseases (i.e., depression, cardiovascular disease, Type II Diabetes, depression, anxiety, etc.) (Beaupere et al., 2021; American Diabetes Association, 2021; Shiuchi et al., 2021; Dr. Eric Berg DC, 2016).
Thus, the big take away when it comes to food is to visit with a primary care doctor to ensure that a person is eating all the right foods for the body, are
eating at reasonable times during the day, and the right amounts (American Diabetes Association, 2022; Shiuchi et al., 2021). Ultimately, eating the right kind of foods will not only help a person overcome dysregulated body states like GCR or IR, but more importantly, eating the right foods gives a person’s body the right nutrients so it can properly make all of those extremely important hormones and neurochemicals; thus, helping them stay healthy and feeling their best (Doc Snipes, 2020; Doc Snipes, 2019).
One final recommendation when it comes to getting in touch with the body is making sure a person is getting enough physical activity. The American lifestyle has found itself once again in another unfortunate circumstance as many are living highly sedentary lifestyles (i.e, sitting too much). Not only can being too sedentary light up a person’s danger brain/stress response, but it can also lead a person to develop a number of physical and mental health issues too (i.e., anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease, Type II diabetes, etc.) (Pears et al., 2021).
Making sure a person is getting enough physical exercise every day can help get their stress response system back into a state of balance. Luckily, there are many wonderful options when it comes to exercise, such as swimming, riding a bike, taking a long walk or hike outside, playing outside, going on a nice comfortable jog, doing body weight exercises (i.e., push ups, sit-ups, leg lifts, etc), yoga, dancing, playing a favorite sport, or using cardiovascular equipment, just to name a few (Walsh, 2011; World Science Foundation, 2019).
2. Learning Emotional Regulation/Stress Coping Skills
Another important way to help better regulate stress is learning basic emotional regulation and distress tolerance skills. As mentioned previously, the human brain is different from other mammals in that it has a prefrontal cortex (Broderick & Blewitt, 2020). This newer part of the brain gives humans the unique capacity to learn how to get in touch with their emotions without letting them completely take over (Van Der Kolk, 2021). This super-hero like ability to work directly with emotions and learn how to better regulate them is called emotional regulation (World Science Foundation, 2019).
Emotional regulation can be especially important in times of stress because the emotional parts of our brain can easily kick into overdrive; thus, keeping our HPA axis/stress response on well after the stressor has passed (Snipes, 2019). Therefore, learning how to regulate our emotions by engaging in emotional regulation activities and skills like mindfulness practices (i.e., noticing your breathing/ emotions/thoughts throughout the day without judgement), being a part of ongoing positive social support (i.e., having nurturing relationships with family and/or friends), and/or practicing various therapeutic lifestyle activities (i.e., exercise, getting a good diet, taking a walk, etc.) can all help better regulate stress and emotions, which in turn, can help reverse GCR (Walsh, 2011; World Science Foundation, 2019; Crockett et al., 2017).
One specific way for a person to learn emotional regulation and/or distress tolerance skills is to visit with a mental health professional (i.e., counselor, psychologist, or social worker). Mental health professionals are trained to not only help a person learn various emotional regulation skills like mindfulness, but they can also help a person better identify various negative mood states (i.e., depression, anxiety, mania), and treat them with a variety of other empirically
validated treatment strategies (i.e., CBT, biofeedback, neurofeedback) (Balt et al., 2020; Crockett et al. 2017).
People who have experienced severe childhood and/or adult trauma are highly encouraged to visit with a mental health provider to help them with emotional regulation as well as learn other important stress coping skills. Untreated psychological trauma can drastically impact a person’s day-to-day stress by keeping their danger brain constantly activated (Van Der Kolk 2013; Rotenburg & McGrath, 2016; World Science Foundation, 2019; Sarapultsev et al., 2020). Many mental health professionals have been trained to work with those who have suffered psychological trauma (PTSD, CPTSD, developmental trauma, etc.), and therefore, can offer treatments outside the public sphere that have been scientifically proven to help people positively cope and overcome their traumatic experiences (e..g, treatments like EMDR, Internal Family Systems Theory, Schema Therapy, Neurofeedback, Biofeedback, Somatic Experiencing, group therapy, etc., can all help treat trauma.) (Van Der Kolk, 2013; Langroudi et al. 2011; Koberda et al. 2014; Altan et al. 2016; Balt et al. 2020; Yalom & Leszcz, 2020).
3. Examining The Physical Environment
One last important area to examine when it comes to rebalancing the stress response are any stressors that might be located in the physical environment. For example, this includes not just a person’s home environment (i.e, ongoing noises that might be causing stress), but also their work, social, and even local community environments as well (i.e., living in a place where their might be toxins in the water or by a noisy airport) (Snipes, 2019).
Snipes (2019) points out that our bodies and minds might be all good and well, but something in a person’s environment as simple as too much light at night can trigger their danger brain/stress response. Therefore, taking a good hard look at the physical environment and identifying things that might be causing undue stress can help a person overcome excessive stress activation.
4. Modern Approaches: Neurofeedback & Stress
One modern treatment strategy that can also help re-regulate a person’s stress response system brain is neurofeedback (Balt et al., 2020). Neurofeedback is a scientifically proven, noninvasive type of neurotherapy that can help a person rebalance their brain waves into more healthy patterns via operant conditioning (i.e., having a person watch a movie, listens to music, or play a video game) (Cohen, 2020; Koberda et al. 2014; Altan et al. 2016).
In fact, a specialized type of neurofeedback called infraslow fluctuation (ISF) can specifically target deeper brain structures that are a part of maintaining balance between a person’s stress response and their ability to relax (Balt et al., 2020). Not only is ISF showing to be a promising treatment in helping rebalance stress regulatory functions/improve mental health symptoms (i.e., decreases in depression/anxiety, improved sleep), but coupling ISF with simply biofeedback measures like heart rate or skin changes seem to further enhance positive stress regulation as well as fine tune individualized neurofeedback efforts (Balt et al., 2020).
Summary
As discussed throughout this article series, ongoing, chronic stress can negatively effect a person’s internal stress response system by keeping their stress hormone, cortisol, constantly pumping. This non-stop dumping of cortisol over long periods of time in the body can eventually cause a person’s stress response system, and a number of other important body systems (i.e., immune and digestive), to become highly dysregulated. Over time, this unbalanced, dysregulated internal body state can eventually cause a person’s body to stop utilizing cortisol effectively. Over time, this inability of the body to effectively utilize cortisol can lead a person to develop glucocorticoid resistance; a condition that has been linked to a number of physical and mental health diseases (i.e, Type 2 diabetes, depression, cardiovascular disease, cognitive impairment, cancer, etc.). In addition, becoming both glucocorticoid resistant and insulin resistant, can further contribute and/or exacerbate internal body dysregulation and disease.
Despite these negative effects, a number of scientifically proven treatment strategies can help bring a person’s stress response back into a state of homeostatic balance. The primary treatment strategies discussed in this article series included: 1) visiting with a primary care provider/getting an updated physical, 2) eating the right foods, 3)getting enough physical exercise, 4) learning emotional regulation and/or stress coping skills, 5) visiting with a mental health provider, 6) making appropriate environmental changes, and 7) utilizing both traditional and newer empirically validated mental health treatment strategies (i.e., neurofeedback, biofeedback, CBT, DBT, IFS,, and, etc.).
Although practicing these treatment strategies in isolation can help a person re regulate their stress response, doing them in concert can help further enhance the body’s ability to go from a state of ongoing stress/imbalance back to a state of calm, relaxation, and harmony (World Science Foundation, 2019).
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