The effects of stress on aging can be scary! I want to dive deeper into this with you.  
 
My research got me wondering, what exactly goes on in our bodies when we experience stress? I got online and searched "how does stress make me look older?".
Here's what I found. 
When you experience stress, your brain begins your body's response and releases a hormone called cortisol. This is an essential hormone that helps control your metabolism, sleep cycle, and regulates your blood pressure and blood sugar.  
 
High stress situations can make your body release too much cortisol that gets stored in the body. This can cause symptoms like anxiety, depression, weight gain, and trouble sleeping. 
Those are some pretty common things that we go to the doctor for, but they don't always link it to stress.
Another thing stress causes is break outs and wrinkles, so reducing your stress can make you look younger and healthier, and potentially lengthen your life!
I was experiencing all of these symptoms so I knew if I wanted to feel better, I needed to get to the root of this problem and fix it myself. 
They say knowing is half the battle. Now it's time to take action.
The first step is to identify your stressors. I want to share with you my worksheet that helped me do this. 
  
This is an important step because once you know what your stressors are, you can start working on avoiding or eliminating them.
This worksheet will help you be more aware of how things make you feel as you go about your day. It can also help shift your focus to more productive things, and ways to combat stress when it comes up. 
 
Use the worksheet every day until identifying your stressors becomes more natural. I still use it when I start to feel anxiety creeping up!
(Click here to download the worksheet from my resource page)
There is no quick fix for this, but taking the time to identify the habits and areas of your life that just aren't working for you is necessary to figure out solutions that will stick.  
 
There is no wrong way to do this! It’s such a personal journey and it will look different for everyone.