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Stress

Fight-or-Flight is our Body’s Response to Stress

Have you ever noticed that when you feel stressed you also feel sick or run down? Often times, sickness and stress go hand in hand. Our bodies produce a hormone called cortisol which is also known as the stress hormone. Cortisol, which is made by the adrenal glands, can serve as both a good purpose or a bad one.

Cortisol is responsible for the fight-or-flight response also known as the acute stress response. Fight-or-flight is our body’s response to stress which also assists you in escaping from danger. Fight-or-flight includes the deepening of your breathing. When your taking deeper breaths, more oxygen can enter the body which increases oxygen allowing you to run or escape faster.

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Help Avoid Chronic Stress

When your body is in fight-or-flight response, not only does your breathing increase, but your respiration increases as well. Breathing is taking in oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide while respiration is the process of breaking down that oxygen so that the cells can use it. In addition, fight-or-flight increases your body’s heart rate, dilates your pupils, and rushes blood to your muscles.

In an emergency, fight-or-flight is a necessity. However, under chronic stress, the body gets stuck in fight-or-flight mode causing the body to swings dangerously out of balance which could endanger long-term health. Physical stress such as standing for long periods, chemical stress such as increased sugar levels or emotional stress such as anger or depression can all initiate the fight-or-flight response.

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Chiropractic Checkups Help Stress-Related Symptoms

Stress can cause a spinal subluxation which is when a vertebra becomes misaligned and interferes with the spinal nerves. Nerves control the body’s function and immunity so if there is a subluxation or misalignment in the spine, it could cause illness or disease.

Chiropractic checkups can help to identity stress-related symptoms such as headaches or neck and back pain, by remove subluxations or misalignments which in turn can remove or reduce contributing stressors on the body and increase your overall health.