Positive stressors (called eustress) may include an upcoming wedding, the holidays, or pregnancy. On the other hand, negative stress (called distress) results in the full-blown stress response. If continuous, negative stress can lead to loss of productivity, health problems, and exhaustion.

Here are 10 ways to make it easier.

1. Exercise. Working out regularly is one of the best ways to relax your body and mind.
2. Relax Your Muscles. When you’re stressed, your muscles get tense.
3. Deep Breathing.
4. Eat Well.
5. Slow Down.
6. Take a Break.
7. Make Time for Hobbies.
8. Talk About Your Problems.

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Stress is key for survival, but too much stress can be detrimental. Emotional stress that stays around for weeks or months can weaken the immune system and cause high blood pressure, fatigue, depression, anxiety and even heart disease. In particular, too much epinephrine can be harmful to your heart.

10 Ways to Use Stress to Your Advantage

1. Develop your self-awareness.
2. Get creative.
3. Examine and act on priorities.
4. Find the opportunities.
5. Increase your intelligence.
6. Welcome optimal frustration.
7. Develop strategy.
8. Involve others.

But long-term stress can lead to health problems. Preventing and managing long-term stress can lower your risk for other conditions like heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, and depression. You can prevent or reduce stress by: Planning ahead.

Cortisol Can Lead to Weight Gain Cortisol stimulates your fat and carbohydrate metabolism, creating a surge of energy in your body. While this process is essential for survival situations, it also increases your appetite. Additionally, elevated cortisol levels can cause cravings for sweet, fatty and salty foods.

Levels of “the stress hormone,” cortisol, rise during tension-filled times. This can turn your overeating into a habit. Because increased levels of the hormone also help cause higher insulin levels, your blood sugar drops and you crave sugary, fatty foods.

Stress really can cause weight gain — and it’s not about eating. Constant stress can pump up the number of fat cells we generate, a lab study suggests. Stress can make you fat. And it’s not entirely because you stress eat, a new study suggests.

Increased cortisol levels, as the result of anxiety, cause fat to build up in the stomach and leads to an increase in weight. The longer that a person experiences stress and anxiety, the more weight he or she can potentially gain.

Prolonged stress can affect your mental and physical health. It can even lead to a little extra weight around the middle, and extra abdominal fat isn’t good for you. Stress belly isn’t a medical diagnosis. It’s a way to describe how stress and stress hormones can affect your belly.

What you can do to treat or lose stress belly

1. Eat a balanced diet: Adopt a balanced diet that includes plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
2. Reduce total calories: Limit foods that are high in calories with little to no nutrition.

People feel the effects of stress and anxiety in many ways. One common symptom is stomachaches. Anxiety can worsen symptoms of abdominal cramps and pain and make you literally feel sick to your stomach.

A nervous stomach can often be treated with home and natural remedies, as well as lifestyle changes.

1. Try herbal remedies.
2. Avoid caffeine, especially coffee.
3. Practice deep breathing, mindfulness, and meditation.
4. Try calming diffuser oils or incenses.
5. Find space for yourself to relax.