By LaKisha Watson, MS, CEAP, LCDCI
For a lot of people, stress does not feel like a temporary state. It starts to feel normal.
You get used to being tired. You adjust to always thinking about the next thing. You tell yourself you will slow down later, once things settle. But for many, things do not settle; they just shift.
Over time, stress can become your baseline.
It can show up in small ways first. Less patience. Shorter attention span. Difficulty staying present. Then it can move into the body—tightness, disrupted sleep, or feeling like you are always “on.” At that point, it is not just stress. It is strain.
What makes this harder is that high-functioning stress is often rewarded. Being dependable, responsive, and productive can mask how much pressure someone is under.
So the question is not just “Am I stressed?”
It becomes, “What have I adjusted to that is no longer working for me?”
Stress awareness is less about labeling and more about recognizing patterns. Where are you overextending? What are you carrying that has not been addressed? What have you been pushing past without checking in?
Those answers are where change starts.
If any of this stands out, it may be worth seeking support and take a closer look at what your current baseline actually is.