Biological Aspects of Stress

Welcome to the Empire Spit blog! This will serve as an educational platform regarding stress, a phenomenon that affects practically all of our lives, wether it is stress from work, school, or social dynamics. 

Stress is a natural response to challenging or threatening situations. When your body experiences stress, it reacts by releasing cortisol, noradrenaline and adrenaline - hormones that trigger physiological changes in the body. These changes may be observed in the brain, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) Axis. the HPA Axis is a network of interactions between the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenal glands. When the brain perceives a threat, the hypothalamus releases CRH which in turn signals the pituitary gland to release ACTH, finally triggering the adrenal glands to release cortisol, which happens to be the primary stress hormone. Changes in the brain are measured in a shrinking of the hippocampus, a brain region responsible for memory encryption and storage. This in turn may lead to cognitive impairment. The sympathetic SNS is responsible for the "fight or flight" response to stress. Activation of this system triggers a release of adrenaline and noradrenaline, which increases heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration. Finally, inflammation in the body can be another result of chronic stress. This happens because cortisol weakens the immune system, making us more prone to infections and illnesses. 

It is important to be aware of the physiological workings behind the cognitive processing of stress. This information is relevant to the way we view stress and its harmful effects