This complete communications cycle from the immune system to the brain and back again allows the immune system to talk to the brain, and the brain to then talk back and shut down the immune response when it s no longer needed. According to Dr. Sternberg, if you re chronically stressed, the part of the brain that controls the stress response is going to be constantly pumping out a lot of stress hormones. The immune cells are being bathed in molecules which are essentially telling them to stop fighting. And so in situations of chronic stress your immune cells are less able to respond to an invader like a bacteria or a virus. People in these situations, Dr. Sternberg says, show a prolonged healing time, a decreased ability of their immune systems to respond to vaccination, and an increased susceptibility to viral infections like the common cold.
Some Stress is Good People tend to talk about stress as if it s all bad.
It s not. Some stress is good for you, Dr. Sternberg says. Otherwise, she may come across as lethargic and listless. But while some stress is good, too much is not good. If you re too stressed, your performance falls off, Dr. Sternberg says.