As humans, we often experience stress. The reasons are certainly very diverse. Starting from work problems, romance, or even problems with yourself can also be a trigger. 

However, have you ever wondered, what actually happens to the body when we are stressed? Not many people know how negative feelings arise and stress our bodies. 

When we are in a difficult situation in our life, we will certainly feel stressed. And this stress then triggers a biological response by releasing various hormones. 

Then what is the relationship between stress and these various hormones? 

Stress and Hormones 

Everyone must have experienced stress. Several things can trigger stress, such as office problems, problems with partners, and others. 

Stress itself is a reaction experienced by a person either physically or psychologically which requires them to adjust to the changes that occur in the environment around them. 

Maybe everyone has experienced stress, however, not everyone knows how the body processes negative feelings that arise and then become stressed. 

When in situations that are threatening, negative, angry, and others, the body will naturally secrete hormones. And when someone experiences stress, the area in the brain or commonly called the hypothalamus will act as an alarm. This hypothalamus will issue commands to prepare to fight (fight) or avoid (flight). This response is also known as the fight or flight response. The command has also been designed naturally by the body. 

In this command process, the first part to receive the signal is the adrenal gland. The adrenal glands then secrete adrenal hormones. This hormone will make the heart beat faster and the frequency of breathing will increase. 

For this reason, when someone is stressed, the heart will race faster, breathing will also increase, hands will sweat, and you will run to find a place to escape that makes you feel comfortable. And all of that is produced by adrenal hormones.

In addition, adrenal hormones also make blood vessels contract to direct blood to major muscles, such as the heart and lungs. And adrenal hormones are also able to make pain in the body less. For that, when you are stressed you are still able to avoid danger even though you are injured. 

In addition to adrenal hormones, the body also releases the hormone cortisol when stressed. The hormone cortisol has a role in influencing the body's response to stress, both physically and psychologically. 

The main function of the hormone cortisol is to provide abundant energy for the body, especially when the body is under threat, stress or stress. Therefore, the hormone cortisol is often referred to as the "stress hormone", because this hormone is closely related to the stress response. 

The hormone cortisol is controlled by the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, adrenals, and a combination gland or what is commonly called the HPA (hypothalamus pituitary adrenal). The hormone cortisol has an important role in the body. This is because most cells in the body have cortisol receptors. 

The hormone cortisol can function to control blood sugar levels, regulate metabolism in the body, reduce inflammation, to help form memory. For this reason, when stressed, the hormone cortisol binds to nerve cells which then affects the thought process. Because of this, some experts argue that when people are stressed, they tend to remember something traumatic and emotional very clearly. 

However, excess production of the hormone cortisol will cause problems in the body, such as the appearance of acne, excess weight gain, irregular menstrual cycles, and other problems. For that, do not let stress for too long. 

Another hormone released by the body when stressed is the hormone norepinephrine. This hormone is released by the body together with adrenal hormones that come from the brain. This norepinephrine hormone has a function to keep a person awake and focused when stressed. For times of stress, a person tends to be more awake and focus on the problems that stress them out. 

All of these hormones have their respective functions in managing stress. These hormones can be beneficial to the body and can be problematic for the body. Thus, we shouldn’t produce too much of these stress hormones. 

References: 

https://hellosehat.com/mental/stres/seputar-hormon-stres/

https://www.klikdokter.com/psikologi/kesehatan-mental/apa-yang-terjadi-pada-tubuh saat-anda-stres 

https://www.merdeka.com/sehat/kenali-3-hormon-yang-berkaitan-dengan-stres.html