The Body’s Balancing Act
Stress: More Than Just Pressure
Stress is often seen as the enemy — something to fight off or escape. But like many of our body’s survival systems, it has a purpose. In the right dose, stress sharpens focus, fuels motivation, and helps us adapt. It’s only when stress lingers or overwhelms that it tips the balance and starts to harm.
At Safe Spaces Therapy, stress isn’t treated as a weakness. It’s part of being human. Together we can explore what’s helpful, what’s harmful, and how to shift stress from something that weighs you down into something you can manage — and sometimes even harness.
At a glance
- Stress is the body’s natural survival signal — not always bad.
- Helpful stress motivates, sharpens focus, and builds resilience.
- Harmful stress overwhelms, burns out, and disrupts balance.
- Awareness and boundaries help keep stress in the “helpful zone.”
- Therapy can support shifting stress from enemy to ally.
At the centre of stress is is cortisol, sometimes called the “stress hormone.”
- In short bursts, cortisol is helpful. It boosts alertness, steadies energy, and prepares the body to respond.
- Over time, though, constant high levels can wear us down — impacting sleep, mood, digestion, and even immunity.
So stress isn’t automatically harmful. It’s the chronic, unrelenting kind that tips the balance.
Stress as an Elastic Band
Imagine your body as an elastic band:
- A little stretch helps it stay flexible. That’s everyday stress — it keeps us alert, moving, and engaged.
- Stretch it too far, too often, and it weakens, losing its spring. That’s chronic stress — the band struggles to bounce back.
- Without any stretch at all, the band becomes brittle. That’s no stress — and it can leave us unprepared for life’s demands.
Balance is the key.
Helpful vs Harmful Stress
So you thought stress was just negative, well here’s a way of looking at it.
- Helpful stress (sometimes called eustress): motivates, sharpens focus, energises, boosts resilience.
- Harmful stress (distress): overwhelms, exhausts, and makes us shut down or burn out.
It isn’t about removing stress completely — it’s about learning to keep it in the helpful zone.
Managing Stress
Here’s a few pointers on how you can manage stress.
- Awareness → notice when your “elastic band” is stretched too tight for too long.
- Release valves → grounding, movement, hobbies, and rest reduce the build-up.
- Boundaries → saying no, pacing commitments, and protecting recovery time.
- Support → talking it through, whether with friends or in therapy, can reset perspective
Stress can encourage us as well as halt us, like everything, it’s always down to balance.
Stress isn’t the enemy. With the right support, it can become something to understand — and sometimes even harness.
Living in Balance
Stress is part of life. It can drive us forward or drag us down — often depending on how long and how intensely we’re under its pull.
At Safe Spaces Therapy, we don’t treat stress as the enemy. We explore how it shows up in your life, how it might be pushing you too far, and what balance looks like for you. With the right support, stress can shift from being a constant burden to being something you understand, manage, and sometimes even harness.
