Stress and anxiety affect all walks of life, but help is at hand for sufferers, as Dr Richard Newland explains... I once overheard a successful businessman make a comment about a stress management course: "Why would I want to find out how to manage stress? I prefer to avoid it altogether." He's one of the lucky ones. For most of us, even Prime Ministers and football managers, stress is part of our lives, because it's a perfectly natural chemical reaction we have to situations which generate fear and anxiety. We actually need a certain amount of stress in order to kick-start our bodies in the morning and to keep us going throughout the day. In short bursts, stress is entirely manageable. When it happens consistently over a long period of time, that's when I am likely to see sufferers in my surgery asking for help. Unfortunately stress is a difficult problem to beat. Once it gets hold of you, it can be very draining and difficult to fight. Badly stressed people often feel they can't win. They want to remove themselves from a stressful situation, but often find being away from the problem just increases the fear. Only by returning to it do they feel some level of control. Also in order to cope with those feelings of dread upon returning to or leaving the stressful situation, it's very easy to overdo the caffeine, alcohol or smoking. Instead of having a calming effect, all these stimulants can hype the body up and interfere with sleep, which is why insomnia is common problem for the over-stressed. Too much negative stress ultimately makes people unable to perform effectively at home or at work, but as a doctor my main concern is the effect of stress on health. The main culprit in stress-related illness is the constant surging of adrenaline. This is the hormone that increases the heart rate and causes the digestive system to go into overdrive, leading to conditions like palpitations, high blood pressure and irritable bowel syndrome. Stress is also thought likely to have an impact on the immune system which is why after periods of stress you can feel run down and be susceptible to complaints like colds, 'flu, mouth ulcers, skin problems and thrush. So what can you do? When you are stressed, it is so hard to make positive decisions or focus properly on solving the problem; even taking on board advice from magazine articles on how to cope with stress might be beyond you. Dr Newland suggests... - Cut down on the drinking and the smoking. Of course I would say that as a doctor! I am not saying that a modicum of social drinking isn't acceptable; in fact I believe it does help people to relax. Just make sure you keep it to one or two glasses of wine. Your overloaded system doesn't need more chemicals creating havoc. - Go for a run or a brisk walk - a burst of activity is one of the things the body is preparing itself for when it starts pumping adrenaline around the system. Making time, say 20 minutes a day, to exercise will help dissipate the build-up of stress hormones. - Stop and try to switch off. If you can't do it yourself, ask a friend to call you at an agreed time or get a colleague to act as a stress-buddy - someone who will physically remove you from your desk for a five-minute break and a spot of fresh air. - Finally, talk about it to offload some of the strain. To a friend, your mother and especially your GP. Dr. Richard Newland is a GP at the Newhall Medical Practice which is Birmingham's first private GP service. It offers a traditional but 'stress-free' GP service with same day appointments, unhurried consultations and no need to register. For an appointment, contact the Practice Manager Linda Hamilton on 0121 236 6633. | 
