About Stress

• Stress is usually caused by something that makes you feel frustrated or angry. Even though everyone must deal with some amount of stress in life, what individuals find stressful can vary. When the body reacts to change, the thing that causes the change can be a potential stress factor. Both physical and mental health can be adversely affected when a person is constantly under too much stress. Excessive stress can cause heart disease or depression, and, ironically, experiencing a heart attack or suffering from depression can cause stress. In turn, stress can lead to more feelings of anxiety. Fatigue, illness and environmental factors are common causes of stress although a medical condition such as low blood sugar, hyperthyroidism, vitamin B12 deficiency or a tumor affecting the adrenal gland can also contribute to stress. Emotions, fluctuating hormones, side effects of certain medications, smoking and allergies are other factors that can lead to anxiety and stress. Headaches, chest pain, heart palpitations or abdominal pain are often physical symptoms of stress.
  
  

About Anxiety

• Anxiety typically comes from feeling apprehensive or fearful. Generalized anxiety disorders are characterized by constant worry and fear. Anxiety may be caused by certain medications including decongestants, tricyclic antidepressants, thyroid medications, diet pills, corticosteroids and amphetamines. Nicotine, caffeine and alcohol can cause anxiety as well. Fatigue, trouble sleeping, inability to concentrate, sweating, trembling and diarrhea, and frequent urination are generally symptoms of anxiety. In some people, anxiety manifests as panic, causing an individual to feel suddenly overwhelmed by an unexplained fear accompanied by rapid breathing and increased heart rate.
  
  

Connection Between the Two

• Researchers from Harvard Medical School say they have found new evidence linking stress and anxiety. The findings of a study on mice suggest that exposure to stress hormones over time causes anxiety associated with depression. While previous studies have shown that individuals who are depressed have high levels of the stress hormone cortisol, medical researchers are still uncertain whether depression causes the release of more hormones or if more stress hormone is what causes depression. Another study published in Behavioral Neuroscience tends to support the theory that constant stress can lead to anxiety, suggesting that release of stress hormones over an extended period of time may make individuals less able to deal with stressful situations when they occur.