The hidden harm your less-than career could be doing to your health

Think you may be suffering from chronic stress? If so, have you convinced yourself that it’s OK to keep going? When you’re overworked and overstretched, the last thing you feel like doing is making time for yourself.

But by talking to nutritional therapist Clare Backhouse in the latest episode of my podcast Unlock More, I’ve learned that by the time the symptoms of pushing yourself too hard have shown themselves, a domino effect of hormones is already in motion and you may be well on your way to burnout.

And it’s not just about a toxic work environment, overbearing workload or unrealistic performance expectations. The frustration, dissatisfaction and confusion that arise when you’re not reaching for your goals, ambitions and purpose are just as noxious as an office bully or a disinterested employer.

So if you are starting to experience the burden of chronic stress, then the time to act is now.

Follow me as I take a deep dive with Clare on what stress does to our hormones and the downward spiral that can so easily follow.

But first, a little background.

The working world isn’t working

We’ve all read the statistics. The LSE estimates that poor mental health is costing the UK 5% of its GDP every year (that’s the cost of 650,000 family homes to you and me), with one study finding that one in two working people are at risk of burnout.

It’s no wonder that the WHO declared burnout an occupational phenomenon in 2019.

As someone who has been through burnout and came out the other side, I’m interested in what it does to your body (and my body) on a biological level.

What makes us literally stop?

When everything is OK until it isn’t

I know what it felt like for me and it was pretty debilitating – it took me over eight months to recover. Even the smallest challenge at work would tip me over the edge and I got to the point where leaving the safety and security of a job and ‘messing up my CV’ became the only option. I’m normally a responsible person but the need to relieve the pain I was suffering was greater than any long-term implications of staying away. 

It wasn’t just a matter of feeling stressed, tired or overwhelmed, I was literally knocked off my feet.

Sadly, it’s a common problem.

Signs to look for

Initial signs of burnout can show up as:

• Overwhelm and exhaustion.
• Negative attitudes like lack of commitment or cynicism.
• A deep level of dissatisfaction with your job, career or workplace.
• Poor performance, no matter how hard you try – or just plain apathy.

Without deliberate intervention, you could be on a path to:

• Increased alcohol consumption or substance misuse (including prescription medication).
• Sleep disorders.
• Depression, anxiety and mental health crisis.
• Obesity.
• Musculoskeletal pain.
• Heart disease and stroke.
• Grinding to a halt, taking months or even years to get back on your feet.

A low mental state can lead you to believe you’re making a fuss over nothing. Thankfully it’s at this point that your body’s own natural preservation mechanisms take over.

I ask Clare about what’s going on inside.

Healthy and harmful stress

‘Symptoms of stress are really diverse and everyone handles it differently. It’s important to differentiate between short-term stress and chronic stress.’ she says. ‘There’s nothing wrong with short-term stress because you recover quickly afterwards and carry on calmly.’

What about long-term stress? 

‘When things are unrelenting – when circumstances or your perception of circumstances causes you to feel overwhelmed or pressured for a very long period of time, that’s when you get symptoms.’

Primed for performance

Short-term stress gears us up for fight or flight. At one time in human history, this may have been running away from a tiger, but these days, it’s more likely to be when we’re preparing for a presentation at work or getting ready to take part in a tennis tournament.

The body diverts its resources away from things we don’t need right now like digestion and the reproductive system and prioritises things like the cardiovascular system to kick the body up a gear.

It’s a fascinating domino effect going on without our knowledge.

‘The hypothalamus speaks to the pituitary, which makes the callout for cortisol and adrenaline from your adrenal glands, which react to perceived stress,’ Clare explains; ‘adrenaline is a short-term hormone to get more glucose into your blood, increase blood pressure, and increase heart rate.’

So you’re ready for action. 

But what happens when the stress levels don’t drop and the process keeps going?

This is when things go wrong

Less blood going to your stomach and lower stomach acid can trigger reflux, IBS, impaired immunity, susceptibility to parasites and infection – not to mention the knock-on effects of nutrient deficiency, sleep deprivation, thyroid dysfunction, and inflammation caused by toxins.

This is when your health hits its downward spiral. It’s the point at which we’re meant to put the brakes on but we keep going on a toxic diet of fear and anxiety.

Why the tiredness is relentless

Cortisol gets a bad rap but in healthy amounts, it helps to regulate sleep, metabolism and energy levels as well as controlling infection.

‘It’s meant to be high in the morning and comes down in the evening.’ Clare explains. ‘But it will spike if you need a longer stress response. If it’s produced in greater and greater amounts due to long-term stress it causes all kinds of dysregulation. It’s our sleep/wake hormone so you can find yourself wired in the afternoon and evening – at the exact time when you don’t need it.’

So, just when your body needs sleep and nutrition, it’s being whipped away. You’re in what Clare calls the adaptation response phase. 

And the cycle deepens until you reach the exhaustion phase called burnout. Your body has downregulated your stress response to the point where you can’t function anymore, potentially even leading to chronic fatigue. You’re exhausted all the time regardless of how much sleep you get. You can’t pick yourself up again and it takes you longer to recover.

The body says stop.

As a coach, I’m on a mission to make sure no one else falls down the same hole that I did.

So here are my…

five quick takeaways that could change your life today

• Don’t wait until you are in a never-ending cycle of exhaustion to put the breaks on.
• Chronic stress harms your body in ways you cannot always see or control.
• Even when you’re doing something that you’ve chosen or that you think you love, if you’re slogging on way beyond exhaustion it may be destroying your health
• There is always hope. Drop a few spinning plates, or let a few people down, it’s OK.  You need time, space and help to heal and the right people will show up for you.
• Your body’s natural desire is to heal, so do what you can to help it.

When it’s time to turn around and run

I love handing the final remarks over to my podcast guests and I’m never disappointed with what they have to say. For someone so knee-deep in science, Clare’s comment is profound:

‘It doesn’t seem instinctive at the time, but don’t try to hold back the sea. Go up the mountain and find peace.’

It’s about stepping back from being superman or supergirl.

‘More isn’t always more. Let a few balls drop – take a hit for the moment to get longer-term returns.’ she says. ‘Let’s see if we can increase peace, connection and joy. Let’s increase doing the things we love.’

And that’s what’s so different about Clare’s approach. For her, it’s not just about applying the brakes – it’s about trying a whole new direction.

Something I wholeheartedly approve of.

If this resonates with you, please don’t leave it any longer. Drop me a line and let’s find a path that gets you back in control of your life.

And to find Clare’s website with more tips and info click here: https://www.transformationnutrition.org/