What Are Common Symptoms of Stress?
Manifestations of stress are numerous and varied but they generally fall into four categories (this is only a partial list of most common symptoms): • Physical: fatigue, headache, insomnia, muscle aches/stiffness (especially neck, shoulders and low back), heart palpitations, chest pains, abdominal cramps, nausea, trembling, cold extremities, flushing or sweating and frequent colds. • Mental: decrease in concentration and memory, indecisiveness, mind racing or going blank, confusion, loss of sense of humor. • Emotional: anxiety, nervousness, depression, anger, frustration, worry, fear, irritability, impatience, short temper. • Behavioral: pacing, fidgeting, nervous habits (nail-biting, foot-tapping), increased eating, smoking, drinking, crying, yelling, swearing, blaming and even throwing things or hitting. What Are the Causes of Stress? Dr. Selye called the causes of stress, “stressors” or “triggers.” There are two kinds of stressors, external and internal. External stressors include:
