The MS stress connection has been studied over the years, but the results haven’t been agreed on by everyone. Multiple Sclerosis stress research showed relapses to be more prevalent among highly stressed MS patients in one two-year long study. Another study offered results showing a handful of parents who had lost a child actually developed MS. Whether everyone agrees on the outcome of these two particular studies or not, the important thing is to reduce stress from your life as much as possible. The body of an MS patient is already at odds with itself, so there’s no sense in aggravating the current situation by adding stress into the picture.
Stress is never a good thing as it is, whether you have Multiple Sclerosis or not. The body learns to deal with stress over time, but only to a certain extent. Once you’ve reached a threshold your body considers to be the maximum amount of stress it can take, it begins to react in a myriad of ways. People have reported flare-ups or an increase in the severity of symptoms after a continuous bout of stressful situations. Stress might aggravate MS in some people, while others find their MS is a source of stress.
Being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis causes you to think differently about aspects of life than you did before. You might be worried about employment, the emergence of new symptoms, difficulty with health insurance, and not knowing what the future may hold for you physically. Each of these can take a toll on your healthy, thus compromising your immune system.
Reducing Stress
Learn to relax and take things in stride is extremely important. Depending on your physical capabilities, learning to de-stress the mind and body can be achieved in a few different ways. The mind can be relaxed through managing anger, eliminating causes of stress, coping with the emotional changes of Multiple Sclerosis, and simplifying your life. The body can be relaxed through Tai Chi, exercise, swimming, massage, yoga, walking, bicycling, or any other physical activities that take your mind off of what you are worried about and allow you to relax.
Joining a social support group can give you others to talk to about MS stress factors you are experiencing. Members of the group might have additional stress-reducing techniques to help reduce Multiple Sclerosis stress. Planning ahead also tends to eliminate the need to worry about what the future might bring.
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