How Does Stress Fit Into Mental Illness?

Stress is a normal part of life and we all deal with stress in our own way. However, stress is on two different levels in some cases, since mental illness fits into the equation. Everyone deals with stress and even the so-called normal minds are subject to break mentally. This does not mean the person has a mental illness, rather it means the person is dealing with complicated problems that are not a common part of a day. When a person has a nervous breakdown, it is a temporary state of mind and the person is often capable of returning to a normal lifestyle after receiving temporary treatment. Therefore, we see no mental illness is involved. On the other hand, if you are suffering stress daily and it affects your life dramatically then you more than likely have an underlying mental illness involved.

Stress can cause us to think suicidal, flee normal thinking patterns temporarily, cause us health problems, impair our judgment, and even cause delusions and paranoia as well as other mental health related symptoms. The differ between common stress and abnormal stress is that the symptoms of stress in a common standpoint is temporary, while the symptoms of mental ill are ongoing. Even the so-called normal may need medications to treat stress, but most times when a mental illness is involved, the person will need long-term medicines.

Stress affects both the body and mind and can lead to a series of problems. Stress is a force that forces one part of the mind against another part of the mind, pulling and pushing against the positive forces or compressing emotions and thoughts. When this occurs, a person feels as though they are loosing control of their life and will often lead them to lean on their emotions for solving problems. When a person leans on the emotions that create anger or sadness then it often leads to a negative thought pattern. Now it is up to the person to decide when they had enough and take charge doing something that resolves their problems.

If the person fails to initiate the decision-making process in the mind and dwells consistently on negative emotions then the person is subject to mental illness, providing it linger for longer than a few weeks or even months. What happens is stress changes the equilibrium in the brain and this applies pressure to the mind. When the equilibrium is not re-instated then the mind is subject to chemical imbalances, tumors, diseases and so forth. If the mind has a faulty area, it makes it difficult for a person to cope with stress. This creates additional thinking patterns, including suicidal tendencies or thoughts, and consistent negative thinking. When a person feels negative or suffering and is, unaware of the cause it often creates a higher level of stress for the individual, decreasing the persons coping mechanism.

However, a person may not have a disease, chemical imbalance or tumor and still suffer beyond more than normal stress. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for example is a psychological reaction that reoccurs consistently after a person has witnessed or experienced a high level of trauma. This person will suffer anxiety attacks, depression, reoccurring nightmares, night sweats, flashbacks, and will do everything in their power to avoid social gathering, and triggers that link their minds back to the tragedy. This person suffers abnormal stress daily and will do everything in their power to avoid stress at the same time. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a mental health issue, since the person endured extreme trauma.

This marks the person as a candidate for heart attacks, strokes, high-blood pressure, and other medical related illnesses. As you can see, there is a fine line between common stress and mental illness and stress. The levels of stress for the common society are often tolerable, while the mentally ill have to fight a million times harder to avoid stress and/or cope with stress. If you or someone you love is suffering stress, you may want to consider stress management techniques that can benefit everyone. There are many techniques that help a person relieve stress, including techniques for high-intense stress levels.