Beyond Feeling Overwhelmed: How Burnout Changes Your Body and Brain
Stress is a biological response designed to protect us. However, when it is chronic and unresolved, it becomes essential to manage stress.
Stress is not simply just an emotional response. It is the root cause of many health concerns. When we seek to understand stress, we can go beyond treating symptoms and address the underlying dysfunction that leads to burnout. Let’s take a look at how we develop burnout and what we can do to prevent it.
Understanding the Stress Response
First, let’s talk about the two systems that are at work. The sympathetic and parasympathetic systems serve us in different ways.
Sympathetic - This system controls the “fight or flight” response. When this system is activated, our hearts beat faster, and our airways open up to give us a quick burst of energy - it works automatically to keep us safe and ready for action. Our pupils enlarge to let in more light, digestion slows to save energy for the emergency, and sweat glands are activated to help us cool off.
Parasympathetic - The parasympathetic system is in charge of a “rest and digest” response. It functions as the “brake” to our fight or flight system. Our heart rate slows, lungs narrow back down, pupils shrink for better focus, digestion increases for advancing nutrient absorption, and saliva increases to help us chew, taste, and digest our meals.
The two systems work together to maintain a balance for our bodies.
Chronic Stress and Changes to the Brain
Now let’s take a look at the different parts of the brain and how they respond when we start to experience burnout.
The Amygdala
Slowly becomes more reactive.
Fear, anxiety, and emotional responses are heightened.
Situations become perceived as more threatening by the body.
The Prefrontal Cortex
Decision-making becomes more difficult.
Concentration suffers.
Impulse control is lacking.
Mental fatigue increases.
The Hippocampus
Memory is impaired.
New information is more difficult to absorb.
Hippocampal volume decreases over time due to increased cortisol.
These symptoms sound ominous but there is a way back to a less stressful state! With appropriate interventions, neuroplasticity can be restored within the brain and healthier brain function can be supported by regulating the nervous system.
This regulation can be achieved by:
Mindfulness and breathing exercises
Prayer and meditation
Time in nature
Gentle movement
Adequate sleep
Optimized nutrition
Gut support
Psychological Effects of Chronic Stress
We talked about the changes in the brain, but chronic stress influences us physically as well. Some of the physical impacts include:
Hormones
Elevated cortisol disrupts hormone balance.
This imbalance may cause:
thyroid dysregulation
insulin resistance
estrogen/progesterone imbalance
low testosterone
adrenal dysfunction
Digestive System
Reduced stomach acid
Poor nutrient absorption
Altered gut microbiome
Leaky gut
IBS symptoms
Immune System
Increased inflammation
Reduced immune resilience
Greater susceptibility to illness
Slower healing
Cardiovascular System
Elevated blood pressure
Increased heart rate
Increased cardiovascular disease risk
Musculoskeletal System
Chronic muscle tension
Headaches
Jaw clenching
Neck and shoulder pain
Alongside the tools we can implement ourselves, we can also reach out for help! Functional wellness practitioners have tools that can help evaluate the impacts of stress on both the body and the brain.
Tools such as HTMA, neurofeedback, counseling, DUTCH testing, and personalized diet and lifestyle plans help practitioners assess what therapies will help manage chronic stress issues.
Conclusion
Stress, although designed to protect, can adversely affect far more than our emotions—it influences almost every system in our body. From brain function and hormone balance to digestion, immunity, and inflammation, chronic stress can wreak havoc on our overall well-being and lead to burnout.
Functional wellness recognizes chronic stress and burnout as significant contributors to persistent health concerns. By understanding the physiological and neurological effects of stress on the body and addressing the underlying imbalances, we can move beyond simply coping with stress and begin increasing our resilience, restoring balance, and supporting our long-term health.
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