Nowadays, stress is a part of people’s everyday lives. Stress is hard to manage and control as it is caused by various factors and it occurs on a daily basis. When changes take place in lifestyle, relationships, environment, etc, the body reacts to those changes with stress so as to adjust with emotional, mental and physical responses. One can experience stress through various factors like environment, pressure, body and also own thoughts. It has been proved recently that stress can cause miscarriage in pregnant women. So, know everything about how stress causes miscarriage and why it is harmful to the body to prevent unwanted consequences.
Not only negative, but positive changes can cause stress too. Positive stress can be caused by promotions, etc which keep the person motivated, alert and ready to confront jeopardy and dangers. Negative stress occurs when a person is bombarded with persistent challenges with no relaxation and relief. This causes the person to become over-worked and the tension in the mind builds up.
Stress and Miscarriage: Can Stress Cause a Miscarriage?
How Stress Affects the Body
The human body’s nervous system is designed in a way that it automatically responds to the stress by causing psychological changes to allow the body to fight with these stressful situations. This mechanism is called the ‘fight or flight response’. This mechanism happens during stress, pressure and emergency. When a person faces stress every day for a prolonged period of time, then this mechanism stays activated for a long time causing physical and emotional wear and tear on the body.
This always happens with negative stress which is called Distress, a negative stress reaction. When this happens, the body’s internal balance disrupts and the equilibrium won’t stay balanced. This condition causes many emotional problems like depression, anxiety, panic attacks, etc which affect daily activities and day to day life on a high level.
Symptoms of Stress
- Headaches
- High Blood Pressure
- Indigestion/Diarrhea
- Problem Sleeping
- Sexual Dysfunction
- Chest pain
- Anxiety
- Clenched Jaw (Grinding teeth)
- Dizziness
- Muscle tension in the face, neck or shoulders
- Increased heartbeat
- Exhaustion
- Shaking
- Cold and sweaty palms and feet
- Sudden weight loss or weight gain
Remember to keep a track of yourself on all these symptoms and check with yourself regularly. This is crucial to ensure what your body is going through so as to take actions accordingly to avoid stress.
How Stress causes Miscarriage
Stress is known to be one of the causes of heart diseases. Lung disorders, cancers, liver cirrhosis, certain accidents and also suicide. From a recent study, stress is now a cause for miscarriage in pregnant women. According to a recent study conducted by scientists from Tufts University and Greece, stress has been observed as a cause for miscarriage, premature delivery and low-birth-weight babies. These women seemed to have high CRH levels in their bloodstream.
During stress, the brain releases many hormones and one of those hormones is Corticotropin (CRH). This hormone is also produced in the uterus and placenta of pregnant women to trigger the contractions of uterine during delivery. Unlike the hormones produced in the uterus, the stress hormones can be released anywhere in the body. These hormones especially target localized mast cells. Mast cells are the cells which cause allergic reactions. Here the problem arises because the uterus has an abundance of mast cells.
So, during stress, CRH causes the mast cells to secrete certain substances like cortisol, histamine and other chemicals which explode and are released out when an allergic reaction is triggered due to stress. These chemicals cause miscarriage and loss of the fetus as they destroy the tissues and also stop the membrane production, disrupting the entire architecture of the placenta. Placenta feeds the baby before delivery. Hence, hormonal effects can trigger chain reactions on certain cells which will end the pregnancy.
Stress Management
It is very important to lead happy days during pregnancy. So, make sure to follow some techniques for stress:
- Positive Attitude
- Meditation
- Relaxation techniques like Yoga/Tai-chi
- Exercise
- Accept the fact that you cannot control certain events
- Healthy diet
- Effective Time management
- Free up some time for activities, hobbies and passions
- Good Sleep cycle
Dos and Don’ts for Stress Management
| Dos | Don’ts |
| Maintain healthy social relationships | Do not track yourself too much with your goals |
| Reach out for help | Do not choose the activities which you don’t enjoy |
| Expectations must be realistic | Do not spend the whole day on electronics |
| Achievable goals | Do not just sit when you have the time to walk |
| Have an active lifestyle | Do not back off from activities like cycling or family bonding |
| Maintain a healthy weight | Don’t compare yourself with others |
| Limit your screen time | Do not procrastinate |
| Choose stairs over the elevator and choose the furthest spot t park | Don’t worry too much about petty things |
You never know what might happen and what can happen, so take out some time for stress management. Sometimes, you don’t know if you’re under stress. So learn and follow techniques and methods to manage your stress. This will not only help with not eliminating the risk factor for miscarriage but also help you live a healthier life both emotionally and physically.
