Our natural response to stress, while helpful in threatening situations, may actually cause
us physical and mental harm. When individuals have been continually exposed to stress for long
periods of time (i.e., their stress responses are continuously activated), a situation known as ‘chronic stress’ can occur. Chronic stress is characterized by emotional vulnerability,
persistent negative emotions, elevated hormonal base levels, hyperactivity of the autonomic
nervous system (so that the body never relaxes), and tendencies to experience psychosomatic
symptoms. While it is not possible to draw definitive causal links, research is showing strong relationships between the experience of chronic stress and the development of illness and disease