How Does Stress Affect Health for Women Over 40?
Learn how to be happy and manage stress to improve your health
How does stress affect health for middle-aged women? Stress affects health for EVERYONE, but statistics show that women over 40 are more prone to stress and anxiety. Midlife issues such as menopause, divorce, caring for aging parents, children leaving home, financial setbacks, and midlife career changes make aging women ripe for stress and health related problems.
Because stress and health are so connected, women over 40 are likely to be susceptible to the following health issues: How does stress affect health? - Weakens immune system
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Obesity
- Depression
- Headaches
- Insomnia
- Fatigue
- Hormonal imbalances
- Digestive problems
- Disinterest in sex
- Neck and back pain
- Acne and other skin conditions
- Unhealthy habits such as smoking or overeating
The list goes on and on. It’s been estimated that stress related issues account for anywhere from 65% to 90% of doctor visits. The responsibilities of women, particularly midlife women, have changed drastically in the last 40 years so it’s important to understand the effects of stress on health. Many women are being stressed to their limits due to these changing responsibilities. One thing that baby-boomer women have to contend with that their mothers didn't is an expanded role in their families, and in society. Today's mothers and grandmothers are responsible for caring for not only their grown children and grandchildren, but a lot of the time, they have to care for their aging parents. In the past, a woman's husband might have helped to shoulder the burdens of life. Now, it's more likely for a woman to be on her own because of divorce or staying single. If you are one of these women who are taking on these additional responsibilities you should ask yourself: How does stress affect health? and What can I do to relieve some of my stress? Many women over 40 now have to compete in a new job market and a technological world that their mothers never had to contend with. A lot of women never completed an advanced education, or obtained modern skills to get a job to sustain their needs. Moreover, employers are doing away with health care benefits and retirement plans. Middle aged women are wondering who will take care of them in the future. Many women over 40 are experiencing tremendous amounts of stress that their bodies were never designed to handle. Women are being forced to take on feminine and masculine roles. This is causing levels of physical stress that is dangerous for their bodies. The list of health issues above is an indicator of how this excess stress is affecting midlife women. Luckily, there are campaigns and initiatives to educate women about this problem, and to teach woman tactics to reduce the stress in their lives. How does stress affect health for women in addition to the stress and health concerns above? Other effects of stress on health is that it can cause low self esteem and depression. Again, a woman is expected to take on roles that she wasn't prepared for. However, a woman might feel that she should be able to live up to these unrealistic expectations. As such, she might feel powerless, incapable, and sad. If you are feeling any of these emotions or other negative symptoms, then it's important that you seek support or counseling. Read 25 Ways to be Happy E-book to help you discover how to be happy again during this transition period in your life. So, are you destined to have declining health because you’re being faced with new challenges once you turn 40 or 50? Are you destined to get older and watch your health deteriorate? Of course not! You have the advantage of knowing that your thoughts, beliefs and your attitude can change anything – including how you cope with stress and how healthy you are. You have all kinds of stress relaxation techniques available to you that previous generations of women didn’t have access to.

My own prescription for health is less paperwork and more running barefoot through the grass. ~Terri Guillemets
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