Stress is a physical, chemical, and/or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension. You know that feeling you get when your performance at work isn’t where it needs to be? Or when your Uber driver takes forever to arrive and now you’re late for your interview? Or when it’s 11:58 and you still need a couple hundred words to complete your assignment due at 11:59? That feeling is very likely stress.

So, what happens to your body when you are stressed? Stress is your body’s way of reacting to a threat or demand. It’s a defense system your body has to prepare for danger triggering the “flight-or-flight” response. Your energy, alertness, and focus increases when this response is triggered. As a bodily protective measure, it’s meant to help you react quickly in dangerous situations such as moving your hand quickly away from a hot stove.

This bodily response is due to a series of chemical reactions that have an effect on your anatomy as a whole. Stress isn’t a state of being that is healthy for you. Being in a state of survival where your body weighs the pros and cons of responses that would cause a decline in your overall health if prolonged isn’t the neutral state of being. Chronic stress has long term effects on the body including your hair.

When you are stressed, your hair reacts. You can experience hair loss and an overall decline in your hair and scalp health. Stress can cause you to lose sleep which is the state in which your body takes the time to repair itself. If you have stress induced insomnia, you are skipping this vital step in your hair process every night leading to unhealthy hair. Being stressed due to an illness or something similar also affects your hairs health by causing your body to redirect important nutrients to other areas of your body that may need it more. Stress can also cause your hair follicles to enter a resting phase where they don’t create new hair strands. Not only does this halt your hairs growth, but over time you start to experience hair loss frequently. In the most extreme of cases, stress can cause you to be actively harmful to your hair. Some people cope with stress by scratching at their scalp or pulling their hair strands. This is oftentimes an unconscious act that leads to dire effects on your hair.

Key Takeaways:

Get those zzz hours in: More often that not, stress comes from a lack of sleep, so try as much as possible to get at least 6-8 hours of sleep each night. your curls will thank you for it!

You are what you eat: The same way your body reacts to certain foods, pay attention to your hair when introducing or eliminating things to and from your diet.

De-stress is key: Take time doing things you love! wether its cooking, reading, exercise or even sleeping, your body and hair needs a break every now and then.