Stress is an unavoidable part of life, and while it often carries a negative connotation, it is actually a fundamental survival mechanism. When faced with a perceived threat, whether physical or emotional, the body instinctively reacts to protect itself. This automatic response is commonly known as the "fight, flight, or freeze" response. While it serves an essential function in dangerous situations, chronic activation of this response due to daily stressors can have significant consequences for mental and physical health.

The body’s response to stress is rooted in human evolution. When our ancestors encountered a predator, their nervous systems immediately prepared them to either confront the threat (fight), escape to safety (flight), or become still and unnoticed (freeze). While modern-day stressors may not include wild animals, our nervous system reacts similarly to job pressures, financial worries, or social conflicts.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, stress is the body's response to change, activating a physiological reaction that helps us adapt and protect ourselves. While short-term stress can be beneficial, prolonged exposure can lead to an overactive stress response, negatively impacting overall well-being.

The Three Stress Responses: Fight, Flight, and Freeze

1. Fight

The fight response prepares the body for direct action. When triggered, the nervous system releases adrenaline, increasing heart rate, blood pressure, and muscle tension. While this reaction once helped early humans fend off predators, today it manifests as irritability, frustration, or aggression.

For instance, the employee who has experienced too much workload may work extremely long hours just to succeed. In short term, the action may produce good results but mostly ends in burnout, anxiety, and physical illness, for example, tension headache or digestion problems.

2. Fight

The flight response triggers an intense need to remove oneself from a stressful situation. Just as our ancestors would flee from danger, modern individuals may avoid conflict, quit jobs impulsively, or detach from relationships when overwhelmed.

Flight mode is linked with restlessness and anxiety. Individuals may have a sense of needing to get up and go-pacing, changing environments constantly, or avoiding tasks that seem too overwhelming. Someone with a flight response might have the desire to change jobs constantly, relocate constantly, or become reclusive in order to avoid perceived dangers.

3. Freeze

The freeze response occurs when the nervous system perceives a threat as too overwhelming to fight or flee. Rather than taking action, individuals shut down, feeling numb, disconnected, or paralyzed by fear.

Unlike fight or flight, which involve heightened activation, freeze mode slows down physiological functions. A person experiencing freeze mode may feel physically unable to move, struggle to make decisions, or find themselves dissociating from their emotions. This can manifest in situations such as public speaking anxiety, where someone might "blank out" or feel stuck in the moment.

What Happens in the Body During A Stressful Event?

When faced with a stressor, the autonomic nervous system (ANS) activates, triggering physiological changes, including:

• Increased heart rate and breathing: The body pumps more oxygen to muscles and the brain in case action is needed.
• Muscle tension: The body prepares for movement, sometimes causing trembling or stiffness.
• Dilated pupils: Vision sharpens to detect potential threats.
• Dry mouth: Saliva production decreases as the body redirects energy to essential functions.
• Changes in skin tone: Blood flow is directed to vital organs, sometimes making the skin appear pale or flushed.

For those experiencing the freeze response, the body undergoes a different reaction, often reducing heart rate and causing physical immobility rather than heightened activation.

Strategies for Coping and Managing the Stress Response

While the stress response is necessary for survival, frequent activation due to daily stressors can take a toll on health. Recognizing your default response—whether fight, flight, or freeze—can help in developing effective coping mechanisms.

1. Moving to a Safe Space

If possible, changing your environment can help signal to your brain that the threat has passed. Stepping outside for fresh air, finding a quiet place, or distancing yourself from overwhelming stimuli can help regulate emotions.

2. Practicing Controlled Breathing

Deep, slow breathing can be used to counteract the stress response by engaging the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes relaxation. Techniques such as diaphragmatic breathing or the 4-7-8 method (inhale for four seconds, hold for seven, exhale for eight) can be particularly effective in calming the body.

3. Engaging in Physical Activity

This helps release pent-up energy and aids in the endorphin cascade, natural boosters for our mood.

4. Seeking Social Support

Relieving oneself from stress can come in many ways, but sharing it with trusted friends, a family member, or a good therapist will sure give that psychological boost of hope. Social support is an especially effective way of cushioning people against the stressors that they are subjected to in chronic forms.

When to Seek Professional Help

While occasional stress is normal, chronic activation of the fight, flight, or freeze response can indicate underlying mental health concerns, such as anxiety disorders or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If stress is affecting daily life—leading to sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, or persistent feelings of fear—it may be time to consult a mental health professional.

Global pop star Selena Gomez has opened up about developing arthritis as a consequence of lupus. The singer, who has long been candid about her health challenges, was first diagnosed with lupus in 2013 and later underwent a kidney transplant.

In a recent conversation with Amy Poehler on her podcast ‘Good Hang with Amy Poehler,’ Gomez discussed her Rare Beauty brand, including its easy-to-use packaging, and shared how her personal health experiences influenced these choices. “I have arthritis in my fingers because of my lupus,” she said. “Before I started the right treatment, even simple things like opening a water bottle were really painful.”

What Is Lupus?

Lupus is an autoimmune condition that causes inflammation throughout the body. In this disease, the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues instead of protecting them. Depending on which tissues are affected, lupus can impact the skin, blood, joints, kidneys, brain, heart, or lungs.

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Medically known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), lupus can affect anyone, though it is far more common in women, particularly those between 15 and 45 years of age. Symptoms vary widely and may include joint pain, fatigue, rashes, and even complications involving internal organs. The disease is unpredictable—it can remain quiet for months and then flare up suddenly, often without warning.

For Selena Gomez, lupus has been more than a medical diagnosis; it has profoundly influenced her life. She first publicly shared her lupus diagnosis in 2015, explaining how she had to pause her career to focus on treatment.

How Does Lupus Trigger Arthritis?

On a recent episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler, Selena Gomez revealed that lupus caused arthritis in her fingers. Unlike osteoarthritis, which results from joint wear and tear, lupus-related arthritis stems from immune system dysfunction. When the immune system attacks its own tissues, it can lead to:

• Inflammation and swelling in the joints, particularly in the hands, wrists, and knees
• Painful stiffness, often worse in the morning
• Flare-ups that make even simple tasks, like opening a water bottle, difficult

• Painless mouth sores
• Skin rashes, including the classic butterfly-shaped rash across the cheeks and nose
• Fatigue and unexplained fevers
• Chest pain or difficulty breathing
• Headaches, dizziness, brain fog, or confusion
• Sensitivity to light and hair loss

Early Signs of Lupus in Females

Lupus predominantly affects women, with about nine out of ten cases occurring in females. Early recognition is key to timely diagnosis and effective management. Common early signs include:

• Persistent fatigue
• Joint pain or swelling, especially in hands, wrists, and knees
• Skin rashes, particularly the butterfly-shaped rash across the cheeks and nose
• Hair thinning or hair loss
• Mouth sores
• Sensitivity to sunlight
• Raynaud’s phenomenon, where fingers and toes turn white or blue in response to cold or stress

Managing LupusCurrently, there is no cure for lupus. Treatment focuses on managing symptoms and reducing flare-ups, with the goal of putting the disease into remission, which means long periods without symptoms.

A 59-year-old woman came in for a follow-up visit for her shingles. During her appointment, she mentioned a small detail: she'd been feeling some skipped heartbeats, and her heart rate was a bit jumpy.

The woman had some preexisting health issues like being overweight, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and prediabetes. Her comment about the jumpy heartbeat caught the attention of the doctor.

These small complaints led her doctor to do a more detailed check-up. An EKG, a test that checks the heart's electrical activity, revealed some key signs. The results showed that she had already suffered a heart attack, even though she hadn't felt it.

This was a 2023 case study published in the Cureus, doctors call this a "silent heart attack," or silent myocardial infarction (SMI). Unlike a typical heart attack, a silent one has no symptoms or only very mild ones, so people don't realize what's happening and don't get medical help. These cases are often discovered by chance during a routine check-up.

While you may not have heard of such cases before, they are not as uncommon as you may think they are. According to American Heart Association, of the estimated 805,000 heart attacks each year in US, 170,000 of them are silent heart attacks.

As the name suggests, these attacks are difficult to recognize but not impossible. We spoke to consultant interventional cardiologists Pankaj Vinod Jariwala of Yashoda Hospitals and Dr. P Praveen Kumar of Karpagam Hospital Dr. Krunal Tamakuwala KD Hospital, to understand more about it.

Who Is At Risk for Silent Heart Attacks?

Silent heart attacks are becoming more common, and they aren't just affecting older men. Doctors are now seeing them in people as young as their late 30s and early 40s, especially those with high-stress jobs. Dr Jariwala said, “They mistake early signs for lifestyle issues: acidity after a heavy dinner, shoulder pain from sitting at a laptop, or tiredness from long hours.”

As Dr. Krunal Tamakuwala points out, the real danger is not that these heart attacks are completely "symptomless," but that their symptoms are so common that they are easily ignored. By the time a person finally sees a doctor, their heart may already be seriously damaged. “Sometimes, it arrives silently, hidden behind complaints we consider minor. That is why doctors urge patients not to ignore symptoms that linger or feel unusual, even if they seem harmless at first.” explained Dr Tamakuwala

What Are The Symptoms Of Silent Heart Attacks?

Many people mistake the early signs of a silent heart attack for everyday issues. Symptoms like

• Acidity
• Shoulder pain
• Tiredness

These are often brushed off as normal problems from a busy lifestyle. In places like India, people tend to make the problem worse by self-medicating with antacids or painkillers, which only delays getting proper medical help.

The reason these heart attacks are so confusing is due to something called referred pain. According to Dr. P Praveen Kumar, the nerves that carry pain signals from the heart are the same ones that connect to the stomach, back, and shoulders. This means that a problem with your heart can cause discomfort in another part of your body.

For people with diabetes, the situation is even more complicated. They may not feel the classic chest pain at all because their nerve sensitivity is reduced. For them, a silent heart attack might feel like

• Simple bloating
• Indigestion
• A dull backache.

The key is to remember that not all heart attacks announce themselves with a dramatic crushing pain. Dr Praveen warns, “f these symptoms are joined by sweating, breathlessness, or dizziness, you should seek medical help immediately.”

Doctors emphasize that lifestyle choices are key to keeping your heart healthy. Regular exercise, a balanced diet, quitting smoking, and managing stress are no longer optional, especially in countries like India, where heart disease is affecting younger people. “Everyday aches may feel ordinary, but when it comes to the heart, they could be the difference between early intervention and irreversible damage.”

If you’re someone who loves walking fast and maybe even got teased for it, here’s some good news. A research team from the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy at the LKS Faculty of Medicine, University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), has found a strong link between walking speed and cancer risk. According to their study, people who walk at a faster pace have a significantly lower risk of developing cancer, especially lung cancer.

Cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide, with nearly 20 million new cases each year. The American Cancer Society already recommends regular physical activity and strength training to help reduce cancer risk. Walking, being the most accessible form of exercise, has long been at the center of these efforts and now, speed may matter too.

How Walking Fast Can Reduce Cancer Risks

According to Professor Cheung Ching-lung, Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy at HKUMed, walking speed is a quick and reliable measure of physical function. It has long been linked to age-related conditions such as cardiovascular disease, dementia, and even overall mortality.

Recent evidence suggests skeletal muscle may help regulate inflammatory and metabolic pathways, which could explain the biological connection between walking speed and cancer risk. To explore this further, researchers at HKUMed examined the relationship using two approaches: self-reported walking pace among participants in the U.K., and a timed six-meter walking test in Hong Kong.

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The results were striking. Fast walkers in the U.K. showed a 13% lower overall risk of cancer, while participants in Hong Kong recorded a 45% decrease. The most dramatic effect was seen in lung cancer, where the risk dropped by as much as 53%. This points to faster walking as a potential way to protect the respiratory system and lower cancer risk.

“Walking speed may be an important marker of physiological resilience linked to cancer risk,” said Professor Cheung. “The lower levels of inflammation and healthier lipid profiles observed among fast walkers support the idea that they are in better overall health. This makes walking speed a simple yet effective tool for assessing health status.”

Brisk Walking Health Benefits

Walking offers a wide range of health benefits, and it is not limited to improving lung function. It also plays a key role in supporting heart health. Contrary to the popular belief that 10,000 steps a day are essential, research shows you can gain significant health benefits with fewer steps. Studies suggest that even 7,000 steps per day can reduce health risks, while as few as 3,867 steps may lower the risk of death. The message is clear: every step counts. Adding even 1,000 more steps than your usual routine is a practical way to begin.

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Other than that, as per Mayo Clinic, Brisk Walking also has other benefits:

Brisk walking supports heart health, uplifts mood, aids weight management, and lowers the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes, cancer, and stroke. It also strengthens bones and muscles, improves balance, boosts energy and immunity, and sharpens memory and focus.