Studies suggest that someone consistently in a state of stress is more susceptible to the symptoms of acid reflux. If you suffer from symptoms of reflux, you may benefit from learning healthy methods to manage and deal with the stressful situations in your life. Dr. Bagnato has this to say about Stress and Acid Reflux
What Is Stress?
Stress is your body’s reaction to difficult situations, called stressors. Many things are considered stressors, but some common examples are:
- Heavy traffic
- Loud noises
- Illness of yourself or a loved one
- The anticipation leading up to a big event
- Financial problems
As our body responds to stressors, the following tends to happen:
- Our blood pressure rises
- Our heart rate rises
- Our immune system is reduced
- Our digestive system slows down
Each individual will react differently to any one situation. Something that seems completely normal to one person may cause a severely stressful reaction in another person. By learning what causes us stress, we can find ways to reduce the overall stress in our lives.
How Stress Affects Symptoms of Reflux
When we’re stressed, we become “hyper-vigilant,” meaning we are more sensitive to—and aware of—physical symptoms and their effects. What this means, then, is that while a person under a lot of psychological stress may not experience more symptoms than someone who is not, he or she is likely to experience much more severe symptoms.
Finding Relief from Stress and Acid Reflux
Certain stress relieving techniques that may help you to reduce the severity of symptoms of acid reflux include:
- Yoga is a form of relaxation exercise that combines stretching techniques with meditative breathing exercises.
- Listen to relaxing music.
- Take a warm bath.
- Get the proper amount of sleep each night. If you aren’t getting at least seven hours of sleep each night, you may find yourself fatigued and irritable during the day, which can result in you reacting poorly to stressors.
- Find chances to laugh. Go to a comedy club or see a funny movie if you’re feeling stressed. Laughter can be one of the best all-natural stress relievers.
By practicing those healthy stress-relieving techniques, you can start lowering your stress levels and, in turn, reduce the severity of your symptoms of reflux.
