That Ship Has Sailed: Guilt and Your Health

In the not so distant past the main mode of transportation for worldwide packages and goods was by ship. If, for some reason, you wanted to send a package to the Far East you would rush down to the shipyards to find a vessel headed in that direction. And if you just happened to show up a few hours after the only boat headed that way left you were out of luck for a month, perhaps two. The clerk would inform you “that ship has sailed” much to your chagrin. At this point a person could do one of two things. They could either wallow in misery bemoaning the missed boat or they could endeavor to be timelier and prepare for the next opportunity to send their package. The former’s mental outlook locks them in negativity while the latter’s set them up to move forward positively.

Guilt is defined, in part, as an emotion that occurs when a person feels that they have violated a moral standard. As members of the ever growing world society we should appreciate the guilt associated with pangs of conscience when someone does something wrong. It helps to keep this world from plunging into total chaos. However, chronic guilt has gripped many people causing great mental and physical anguish. The anguish that is caused leads to stressed bodies, minds and families causing a dizzying downward spiral that some sadly never pull out of.

How Guilt Affects Us

Guilt has some very specific physiological effects on the body. These effects can foster very negative health outcomes if left unmitigated:

Adrenal Fatigue – Guilt feelings, especially those that are unresolved, raises the levels of a stress hormone called cortisol. Stress through guilt puts constant demand on the adrenal glands which produces cortisol and they eventually “burnout”. This can lead to fatigue and in some cases it is so extreme that some cannot get out of bed for more than a few hours at time. It also causes other organs in the body to over work eventually leading to their burnout as well.  

Headaches and backaches – One of the initial symptoms of chronic guilt is muscular tension. This usually takes place in the lower back or in the neck region. Tense lower back muscles causes backaches and tense neck muscles can really make the head ache something terrible.

Anxiety and depression – In addition to the fatigue experienced because of adrenal fatigue guilt increases anxiety and depression which in itself leads to more fatigue and general body aches. When one is achy and tired all the time depression increases and so does the feelings of fatigue causing a vicious downward spiral of poor mental and physical health.

In the next article we will explore ways of overcoming guilt to help foster a better mental and physical outlook on your life.

Diabetes: A 21st Century Scourge - Causes of Diabetes Continued

As we continue to discuss the causes of diabetes there are two significant contributors that must be discussed. Seldom mentioned in most dialogue regarding this scourge are the massive amounts of medications that is consumed the world over and the staggering result of unmitigated stress on our bodies.

Medications

Watch most any pharmaceutical commercial and you will likely notice that about 20 seconds of a 30 second commercial is about all the terrible things the medicine may do to you. Of those 20 seconds a few sound something like this: “Be sure to tell your doctor if you have a liver condition or poor liver function” or “Liver test may be necessary to check liver function”. There are a multitude of reasons why these pronouncements are important but for the sake of this article we will stick with the diabetic angle.

Poor liver function is a death sentence. This may sound ominous and a bit over the top but consider what the liver does (e.g. cleanse the blood, regulate metabolism) and the picture becomes clear. A Poor liver leads to a poor life and possibly diabetes. Medications can slow liver function by creating the need for continuous cleansing of highly toxic substances. These substances may be specifically toxic to the liver breaking down cellular function which decreases the organ’s efficiency.

Also, some medications can actually slow down metabolic processes in the liver causing it to become fatty and sluggish. A fatty liver has great difficulty controlling fasting glucose levels. A fatty liver also increases the incidence of insulin resistance. It is estimated that some 80% of people suffering from Type II diabetes have fat in their liver.

Stress

When it comes to silent killers stress, in my opinion, is second only to inflammation. Chronic stress is a major health issue these days and it comes from multiple sources. Family and other relationships, traffic jams, even video games can induce stress responses in the body. One of the chief responses is elevated cortisol levels. Cortisol is released into the blood stream to give the body a boost of energy to accommodate the “fight or flight” response to stressful situations by increasing blood glucose levels. When cortisol is constantly released it increases blood glucose constantly and insulin resistance is not far behind because the cells do not actually need the energy. Once insulin resistance sets in Type II diabetes rears its hideously ugly head.

In addition, because the body does not actually need to fight or run the extra glucose in the blood stream has to go somewhere. That is when the body produces visceral and abdominal fight to store the unused glucose. This type of fat is extra special and not in a good way. It tends to adversely affect the metabolism essentially becoming its own endocrine system and affecting the hormones that either stimulate or decrease hunger. The net effect is a downward spiral alternating between unmitigated stress, increased abdominal and visceral fat, and increased appetite. All this leads to continuous elevated blood glucose levels and increased insulin resistance. Combined with the cumulative effect of chronic stress we are left with nothing short of diabetic trouble.