Stress can present itself in a variety of ways and everyone experiences differently, which makes it hard to understand sometimes. However, the fundamentals are noticeably similar. Stress impacts your brain. On a basic biological level you, more specifically your brain, release the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline), triggering a fight or flight reaction. This system is great in cases of danger as your body is in survival mode (increased strength, endurance and focus) but when you're just sitting behind your desk, not so much.
We call this the fight-or-flight response, and while this once incredibly important response was evolutionarily adaptive, it is now maladaptive. We don’t live in that same world anymore where it made so much sense. We aren’t being chased down by lions or being eaten by wolves while sitting in front of our computers in our air-conditioned offices, and yet our fight-or-flight responses are still being activated.
From Rats in Cages to Primates in Paradise - The Scientific Story of Stress in Society
Stress can create beneficial pressures which challenge you to excel in your performance, however, there is a limit of stress which is healthy. Stress can be extremely draining and our bodies and mind often need a recovery period after to rejuvenate yourself. How much time? Well, that's hard to say. It depends on a multitude of variables and varies from person to person.
Like we mentioned above, stress can be beneficial to a degree. It can motivate you to perform above average and deliver results in a timely fashion. However, exceed that barrier, and too much stress can be notably counterproductive. Observe this graph:
People want to grow, and in so are willing to push themselves past beyond their comfort zone in order to develop their skills and experience. However, like everything else, there is a limit to how far you can push yourself. Pushing yourself to an unhealthy level can bring you into the danger zone. Observe the circles below, which illustrates the fine line between the stress barriers
But before we get ahead of ourselves, lets learn how to know when its too much