Stress & The Mind Body Connection

If you’re like me, being told “don’t stress” during stressful situations can be incredibly annoying and seemingly impossible. I know it’s hard to not stress during crazy and uncertain times like what we’re experiencing right now, but now more than ever I cannot stress (no pun intended) the importance of NOT stressing. As a wellness coach I’m always looking to find ways to educate people on the importance of reducing stress in order to maintain optimal health and help them find ways to do so. I’ve been practicing meditation for over five years now as a way to combat my own anxiety and I try to encourage as many people I know to try it as well. If you haven’t already heard of the meditation app Insight Timer I highly recommend it for beginners because it has an amazing selection of guided meditations available. Yesterday, for my morning meditation I came across a guided meditation with Laura Garrison-Brook, and it was one of the best ones I’ve listened to in a while. She seamlessly explained the importance of the mind-body connection and how meditation can have a biological effect on our immune systems. I think if more people understood how powerful their minds are and that they can tap into their own magical source to help them heal, the world would be a much different place. 

In this post I’m going to attempt to explain the importance of the mind-body connection and how we can either help or hinder our healing process. When we stress, our body’s ability to fight off viruses and illnesses weakens. So stressing right now in the midst of a pandemic is especially not the time! The ability to keep calm, reduce stress, and limit anxious thoughts is so vital to staying healthy because it can help decrease the chances of getting sick. Stress literally equates to sickness and disease. I’m going to explain the process of how the act of stressing can make you physically ill.

In situations where we find ourselves on constant alert, such as the one that we’re in right now (i.e. coronavirus pandemic) we experience stress. People are panicking, there's not enough food, there’s not enough water, what if I have the virus and don’t even know it?, and I have to sit in the house all day and watch Netflix (such a millennial complaint)! During situations like this, our body utilizes a massive amount of energy in order to be ready for any potential threat. When we’re feeling stressed or anxious, the stress hormone, known as cortisol is released in our bodies. As the body begins to fill up with cortisol, our immune system begins to weaken. When cortisol and stress levels rise, a chemical known as immunoglobulin A also known as IGA decreases. IGA is responsible for the healthy function of our bodies immune system, and it focuses mainly on protecting the gut and respiratory system. 70% of our immunity cells are located in our gut, which also shows how essential it is for us to maintain a healthy diet (and is a whole other conversation that I could talk about for days). Any who, back to IGA, these little blobs swim around in our body and act as vacuum cleaners, sucking up viruses and bacteria, keeping us healthy and disease-free. The less we stress, cortisol levels are kept at bay, and our bodies will produce more IGA which will help keep our immune systems strong.

So what are some ways to help manage or reduce stress you might ask? It’s been scientifically proven that just 10 minutes of meditation a day can help reduce the amount of cortisol produced in the body, thereby increasing immunoglobulin A levels. This demonstrates how powerful the mind-body connection truly is. Instead of stressing over things you can’t control, try to focus on the things you can control. You have control over your body and immunity and you’re more powerful than you give yourself credit for being. Try to find ways to help you be as stress free as possible. But I also want to remind you that it is completely normal if you do feel a little anxious right now. The best thing to do is to stay grounded and focus on things you can do to better yourself and just chill. Stress reducing activities such as meditation, yoga, and deep breathing are great ways to help the body maintain homeostasis during stressful events.