stress response - quotes and descriptions to inspire creative writing

There were days that focus was challenging, that reading just wasn't a possibility - well, not more than a paragraph. My stress response was jacked up. I'd lost so much weight so fast it was scary. I lost half my hair too. My sleep was almost non-existent, an hour or so here and there. Then came a bout of psychosis and the doctors who looked at everything except my stress response as the culprit, even though I was in a living nightmare. Over the years I learned how to resonate with mother nature, to find deep enjoyment in the simple things in life. I have a dog to hug. I watch comedy and movies for kids. These days I'm a creative writer, and the writing healed me so much. I learned ways to bring mental calm in choices of words, in being able to see through the eyes of others and feel their emotions. So not only did I heal, I am now a healer. And knowing that it was all rooted in a stress response that came from my environment, I feel so much better about myself. I learned about ACEs, about meditation and the value of regular exercise. These days, even with the new challenges, I'm fitter and healthier than most. I have the skills to survive and thrive, keeping my stress response in the comfort zone.

"The thing is," said Mike, "that until governments around the world get to grips with the human stress response, what it is, when it is triggered, what it does to the human in terms of brain health, body and behaviour - the world will remain as a pressure cooker with the gas stuck on high."

When society breaks at the level of micro interactions - social kindness is overwhelmed by stress responses - we see trouble appear at the level of macro interactions - riots and social violence. It is similar to a chemical buffer being overwhelmed, for a long time there is no difference to the system and then, apparently suddenly, the changes are abrupt, difficult to reverse and can have long lasting consequences.