Stress can be the number one killer as well as the root cause of most every sickness. Of course who am I to say these things since I don’t have a license to talk about anything medical or psychological. I am just a self-educated blogger. Self-education doesn’t count for much in a scientific world. Even if you read all the right stuff and know just as much as any medical professional.

Most people don’t know that there are two kinds of stress; there is distress and there is eustress. Distress is the one that most of us are more familiar with. This is the state of suffering, agony, and state of being in trouble. The distressed state is normally temporary but won’t feel like it when it is being experienced.

You have to be at a higher state of awareness to understand eustress. This is defined as psychological stress that is moderate or normal and can be beneficial. Just like there can be healthy fears. The healthy kind of fear and stress is that which motivates us to do better and achieve more; as long as we are balanced about it and don’t get too caught up in our life’s work. The latter can turn to distress really quick.

Practicing mindfulness can help us to alleviate the distress and allow more of the eustress in and help keep us focused in our life’s pursuits.