Stress And Your Immune System:

Pollyanna Might Have had Something

Most people associate stress with worry, but for your physiology, the definition must be broader. For researchers stress includes any kind of change emotional or physical change

One important variable is missing from this picture, however. A thunderstorm for me is wonderful and beautiful, but for my mother it is a nightmare. In other words, what about our ability to perceive and take in reality in a productive meaningful way? To that end, wouldn’t it be far more effective when the goal is vitality and strong immunity, to become a master at reframing circumstances. For example, in the last 5 years I managed to get the amount of time I spend in upset on any given subject down to 1 day at most (for some subjects, it had been years). That is all due to practice, learning and expanding the experience of joy in my life.

Here is an example for you:
I just had a client email me and tell me that she had left behind one of her favourite inspirational books on the plane, and my response was “how wonderful that you could leave a gift behind for someone who needed that inspiration”. I am not “ positive thinking ”. I have simply made it a point to collect evidence that all is well….and so I believe (not think, or guess) that this happened in perfect order. Most people simply stay frustrated and resigned. We can choose to be happy or be right that something is wrong…it is up to us. However, many have a terrible habit of looking for what is wrong. Worry, for instance, is when we invent things that could go wrong, and then live in the present like those imaginations are real. Heavy sigh. Most worriers have no idea how to stop – they know it would be a good idea, but it is a bad habit practiced over years. It can be changed, however.

What are the symptoms of “being in your own way” with stress?
• Sleep is not as good as it could be
• Feeling a little reactive
• Emotional
• Holding onto the past
• Sluggish digestion
• Poor energy

There is more reason to work with our perspective. It was recently discovered that people under chronic “perceived” stress had above-normal levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), an immune-system protein that promotes inflammation and has been linked with heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis , severe infections and certain cancers.

According to David Holland, M.D., the medical communications director at MediaTrition:"There is a whole new field called "psychoneuroimmunology" that studies the effects of psychological stress on the immune system. Scientists have demonstrated alterations in the normal function of immune cells in animals during times of stress making them vulnerable to invasion by things such as fungi, viruses and bacteria. “

In recent studies some conclusions were made on the impact of stress on immunity:
Studies on Stress and the Immune System
• 293 stress-related studies of 18,941 subjects were performed between the years of 1960 and 2001
Findings
• Short-term stress triggered the immune system to prepare for injury or infection
• Long-term stress caused excessive wear of the immune system
Five Stressors Used in the Studies
• Acute time-limited stressors: LIKE speaking in front of large groups of people
• Brief naturalistic stressors: LIKE taking school exams
• Stressful periods: LIKE the loss of a loved one
• Chronic stressors: such as becoming a caregiver for a chronically ill person where there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel
• Distant Stressors: the result of a traumatic event from the past that continues to affect the present like child abuse or rape.

Researchers discovered the longer the “perceived” length of the stress, the less the body's ability to adapt to the stressful situation. It was determined this kind of stress could lead to negative health repercussions beginning with attacking the immune system at the cellular level.

The good news. All of those statistics are based on the PERCEPTION of stress….and we have the ability to choose our perspective on any given situation. Most people live as though their stress is circumstantial, based on experience, not based on their ability to perceive. To summarize some of the principles of the Get Out of Your Own Way Course© that might help you:
• Stress, put simply, is created when there is a difference between ‘what is” and “what you wish was”. The chasm between the two creates stress. Most people try to change “what is” (like their jobs or husbands), because they believe that is the only way. The alternative is to alter your paradigm about how you wish things were…this does take skill.
• You can create your circumstances in the future through Deliberate Creation and Art of Allowing Metaphysical Principles. But you have to collect evidence for well-being – even when there is evidence to the contrary.
• You also have the power to choose and reframe your thoughts in any moment. That this skill can be learned by anyone.
• People who spend more time in a place of peace , think “how can I have both”, but people who spend time frustrated and unfulfilled are always thinking “what must I sacrifice”. They think in terms of “either or”, not “both”. This opens up possibility for serendipity happening on a much more frequent basis.
• Luck is created. That one’s hard to own, but it is true. If you focus on what is working in your life, more will start working.

Here are some resources I recommend highly for getting you on the path of a health body, and joyful life. Remember that nothing beats experiential transformation, but books and audios can help reinforce. Books and audios I recommend: go to www.abraham-hicks.com and get their free introduction CD on Law of Attraction. I also recommend “Loving What Is” by Byron Katie. If you would like an inspiring movie, watch Pollyanna by Walt Disney with Hailey Mills. It is a must. For experiential Learning, I recommend www.thevitalyou.com ‘s Get Out of Your Own Way Course.

Be well and create a magical day,
Jennifer Hough CPT CNC HBALife Make-Over Coach, Holistic Nutritionist, Best Selling Author of “Wake up and Live the Life You Love”
thevitalyou@sympatico.ca