Physical and Mental Signs of Stress

Physical and Mental Signs of Stress

Stress is so common and often a regular part of people’s lives that they don’t always realize when they are suffering from stress. There are both mental and physical signs of stress that you should be aware of.

Physical Changes

Your body can tell you a lot based on your ailments, and not just due to having a physical condition. It might also be telling you that you are too stressed out and that needs to be addressed. For example, if you notice that you can’t sleep well, you have more or less of an appetite than you used to, or you have been losing or gaining weight, those are physical signs of stress. You may also have skin changes like adult acne, intestinal problems, irregular menstrual cycles, or sexual dysfunction.

Emotional Signs

Your emotional state is very closely related to your level of stress, and is often what someone notices first when they are wondering if they have too much stress. You might feel overwhelmed and like you don’t have full control over your life, or you could have extremely low self-esteem and depression. If you find that you can’t emotionally handle others, you can’t quiet your mind’s racing thoughts, or you keep getting agitated with others, that might also be from a heightened stress level.

Behavioral Changes

You should also pay close attention to your behavior and how it might be changing from day to day. You may find that you are suddenly using substances to cover up the negative emotions or overwhelming mental state, such as smoking cigarettes, drinking more heavily, or experimenting with drugs. Lashing out at others, becoming angry, or procrastinating a lot could also be signs of stress. You may also be fidgeting or biting your nails, which are often associated with being stressed out.

Cognitive and Mental Symptoms

Cognitive signs are related to your mental state, which are sometimes confused with emotional symptoms, but can also be related to them. For example, if you suddenly have poor judgment and are making bad decisions at work or in your personal life, that might be related to your cognitive function. You could have racing thoughts, constant worrying and anxiety, or not being able to focus much on tasks. Stress can also cause poor memory and sudden disorganization where it wasn’t a problem previously in your life.

These are just some of the many signs of stress you may be exhibiting. If you are thinking or feeling anything strange, it is worth asking your doctor about. 

For the 

Chaplain Paul Voorhees Ministry

Eric Dempsey

MS, NESTA Certified Stress Management Coach

Dempseys Resolution Fitness

Protect Your Shelter: How to Prevent Strong Winds From Damaging Your Home

Protect Your Shelter: How to Prevent Strong Winds From Damaging Your Home

Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones can be terrifying. If you're wondering what the difference is between the three, there really isn't any difference. They are just called different names depending on where these storms originate.

Those that form in the Northwest Pacific are called typhoons while those that form in the in the Atlantic and Northeast Pacific are called hurricanes. Cyclones are the storms in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean.

While this bit of trivia is interesting, as a prepper there is only one thing you need to know, which is that these storms wreak havoc! They can be so damaging and dangerous that people may need to evacuate the affected areas.

Very often, this can lead to massive traffic jams and even a shortage of fuel. The recent Hurricane Irma is a good example of this. People were stuck for hours in traffic and some had to wait a long time to get gas for their vehicles, and they are considered the lucky ones.

There were thousands of other people who could not evacuate. Either they didn't have the means to leave or they had nowhere to go. It is an unfortunate predicament but a very possible one. In this article, you'll learn how to minimize wind damage to your home.

While the tips below will not tell you how to cope with flooding that may occur, they'll help keep you safe in your house during the strong winds. The damage from these winds can be massive and when objects everywhere are becoming flying projectiles, you absolutely must know what to do to protect your home and yourself.

* Duct tape all glass windows, doors, etc.

Ideally, you should have storm shutters that you can use those to cover your glass windows and doors. But if you don't, you can use duct tape as an alternative.

Stick long strips of heavy duty duct tape across your windows and glass doors in the shape of an asterisk. In the event the glass shatters, shards will not be sent flying around because the duct tape will be binding the bits of glass to each other.

* Roofing and shingles secured

Make sure that your roof sheathing is securely nailed to the house so that the entire roof is not ripped off during a strong storm. The shingles on your roof need to be well-fitted and securely attached or theyíll all be dislodged and turned into flying projectiles.

* Close your garage doors

The garage doors should be closed and strongly secured.

* Remove unsecured objects

If you have lawn furniture, garden decorations, trash bins, toys, etc. outside your home, you need to remove all of them and store them indoors. A strong storm may pick up all these loose objects and send them flying right through your windows. The goal here is to reduce the possibility of projectiles striking your home.

* Your pool

If you have a swimming pool, do NOT drain it or cover it. If you use a pool cover, a projectile thatís flung on it will totally rip the cover. The water in the swimming pool gives the whole pool weight and this will keep it in place.

During a storm that lasts for days, the ground will become saturated and when pressure builds up, it can dislodge the foundations of an empty pool or even pop it out of the ground. So, keeping your pool filled will prevent this from happening. There is no need to worry about an overflowing pool if you have good drainage.

* Trees

Prune all trees close to your home or chop them down till theyíre just a stump. Trees cause a lot of damage during storms because the huge branches fly off and crash into anything and everything.

* Cracks

Seal cracks in your walls so that heat doesnít escape from your house and the strong winds will not cause interior damage.

Just by following the tips above, your home will be much less likely to get damaged during a hurricane or any storm for that matter. It goes without saying that thorough and early preparation makes its own luck.

You do not want to be in a position where you can't leave but you're also not sure about the structural integrity of your home. Ensure that your home is in good order before a storm looms over the horizon.

Eric Dempsey

Master Sergeant, US Army Retired

ILRRPS Survival with Resistance to Interrogation Course Graduate

Chaplain Paul Voorhees Ministry 

Identifying Stress Triggers

Stress is something everyone deals with, though each person usually has a different level of stress. In order to put a stop to yours, you need to figure out what is causing it. This is done by identifying the stress triggers, which might be situations, people, or events that lead you to feeling stressed out and anxious.

Journaling

A very common way to figure out what is causing you stress is by keeping a journal or diary. This is where you record all of your thoughts and feelings each day, then look back on it when you have a stressful day. You should be able to pinpoint people or situations that led to your increased stress on those days. Remember to look back on your journal entries often to try and find a pattern to discover what was causing your stress. It may be a co-worker you work with often, eating too much junk food and feeling guilt because you are on a diet, or personal issues leading to your stress.

Consider Your Physical Changes

Your body can also be showing signs of stress, even though you might not realize this is what is going on. For example, do you notice that after dealing with a certain person, you tend to get really bad headaches or muscle tension? This is your body's response to the stress that this particular person causes. You might also find that when you are having a bad day at work or your car breaks down, you suddenly have stomach aches or other digestion issues. These are other physical signs of the stress. When you know the physical signs of stress, you can then try to figure out what was going on just before you got those migraine headaches to figure out what was causing your stress.

Notice Your Behavioral Changes

You can also look at how your behavior changes and then narrow down why you think you are behaving in a different manner to figure out what is stressing you out. For example, if you are suddenly not sleeping very well or are sleeping too much, try to think about what was happening on those days of insomnia. You should be able to narrow it down to something that is causing you stress. Some other behavior changes to use when finding your stress triggers are anger or resentment towards others, lashing out, being irritable, eating more or less than you used to, or having changes in your work performance.

Once the critical stress triggers are identified, then you can devote time to truly working on managing, and controlling these triggers. It can be done. Do not ever lose hope!

Eric Dempsey
MS, NESTA Certified Stress Management Coach
Chaplain Paul Voorhees Ministry 

Important Water Purification Tips for Preppers

Important Water Purification Tips for Preppers

During a crisis, the importance of drinking water cannot be overestimated. While the average human being can go without food for 3 weeks or so, most people will not last more than a week without water. Depending on the climate, you may experience severe dehydration in just 3 days if you have no water. It’s horrible and you do NOT want to be in this situation.

Whenever there’s some sort of natural disaster or emergency, the first item that’s quickly bought up is water. During the recent Hurricane Irma, many stores were completely sold out of bottled water. To make matters worse, there were reports of price gouging where water was being sold at $99 a bottle.

To avoid all these issues, you should be storing water in your house in preparation for such emergencies. That’s the first step to not being a victim of circumstances.

However, even with the best preparation, in some cases, you may not have access to drinking water. Your stored water may be wiped out. The stores may be sold out and you’re stuck. So, what do you do?

In this article, you’ll learn about water purification and how you can find water and make it potable. During tough times, you can find water from lakes, swimming pools, water heaters, residual water in garden hoses, parks, golf courses, rooftops, etc. Wherever water collects are good spots for you to get water.

Filtering

Now that you’ve found the water, you can’t just gulp it down like a champ. You’ll end up seriously ill if there are protozoa and viruses in the water. What you’ll need to do is filter and purify the water. It’s important that you know the difference between the two.

Depending on the turbidity of the water, you may or may not need to filter it. If the water is murky and unclear, filtering it is a must. You can use coffee filters to filter the water. You need to find a way to support the coffee filter in order to use it effectively. Once you run the water through the first step of filtering, you’d have removed the larger particles.

Do note that even if the water is clear, it’s not ready to drink. One of the best ways to kill all bacteria and harmful organisms in the water is to boil it. However, if you do not have access to a gas stove or a fire, you will have to use other methods.

Purification

Water purification will remove most bacteria, pathogens and viruses in the water and make them safe to drink. One way of doing this is with chemical treatment.

You can easily purchase water purification tablets from sites like Amazon. There are iodine tablets that will do the job but it’s best to purchase chlorine dioxide water purification tablets. The chlorine dioxide tablets will eliminate the more resistant parasites like Cryptosporidium which cause gastrointestinal issues.

Another alternative are pump-style water purifiers like MyBottle Purifier that’s manufactured by Katadyn. These convenient devices will allow you to prepare clean drinking water on the go. They’re extremely convenient and very portable.

Another brand that you can look at is Fixt Water that allows you to drink clean water anywhere in the world. This amazing product doesn’t require you to prefilter the water or use any tablets. Just add the water you find in the Fixt water bottle and when you drink through the straw, the water will be filtered and purified.

You can check it out here: https://fixtwater.com/bottle

While storing water for emergencies should be your focus, it definitely helps if you purchase a few handheld water purifiers for you and your family. In the event, you need to abandon your home and the only water you can find is from rivers, lakes or other places that worry you, these water purification devices will ease your worries and ensure you stay hydrated.

Eric Dempsey
Master Sergeant, US Army Retired
Chaplain Paul Voorhees Ministry