By Jenny C Evans

As a speaker and performance coach who travels the globe training corporate executives on how to be more resilient to stress, I see and hear a lot of common misconceptions when it comes to some of the best ways to handle stress.

Mistake #1: Thinking stress is only in our heads. A lot of us may think of stress as something we feel – it’s mental, emotional or psychological. What we may forget or not even realize is that stress is also a physiological and chemical event that changes the chemistry of our bodies. Hormones are released that set off a cascade of physical adaptations which are designed to get us to respond to stress in the most meaningful way possible: physically. The stress response is specifically intended for fighting or fleeing – very physical events. Unfortunately, the nature of our technologically advanced, labor saving, sedentary environments don’t allow for many intense physical events to happen to burn off these stress hormones. The stress hormones continue to circulate throughout the body and can lead to weight gain, insomnia, reduced cognitive function, and lowered immunity. Read More→