The Link Between Stress and Chronic Pain

Stress and Persistent Pain

While elevated levels of stress can take a toll on your mental health, it can also wreak havoc on your musculoskeletal health. For people living with elevated levels of stress, persistent soreness, and body aches can be a regular occurrence. Learn more about the relationship between elevated stress levels and their negative impact on your body.

How Stress Affects Pain Levels

When you’re in a stressful situation, it can trigger a chemical response in your body that brings on psychological and physical changes. During stressful times, your brain triggers the release of cortisol—also known as the stress hormone. As a physical response to the release of this hormone, the muscles throughout the body tend to tense up—when experiencing chronic stress, this elevated level of tenseness is almost constant.

While this can help to protect the body from harm in potentially dangerous situations, prolonged exposure to this hormone can leave you experiencing orthopedic pain and even increase your risk of injury. Unfortunately For those already living with conditions with chronic pain, elevated levels of stress can exacerbate these symptoms—especially in the neck, shoulders, and back.

Relieving Stress

One of the best ways to prevent stress-induced pain is to manage your stress levels with healthy coping mechanisms. Follow some of these tips to help you keep your stress levels regulated.

• Identify what is causing you to feel stressed.
• Spend time with loved ones.
• Get 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night.
• Try journaling when you feel overwhelmed.
• Talk to someone you trust.
• Avoid alcohol and nicotine products.
• Try mindfulness meditation.
• Practice deep-breathing exercises.

Orthopedic Care in Gillette, Wyoming

If you have concerns when it comes to your orthopedic health, Powder River Orthopedics & Spine (PROS) is here to help in Gillette, Wyoming. We can evaluate your options so you can rest assured that you get the best possible outcome and are back to a happy and active life in no time.