Using Stress to Make You Stronger

When we stress ourselves in the right ways, and in the right amounts, we become antifragile

While stress can wear us down and feed a myriad of diseases, the intentional use of minor stressors can have the opposite effect.Olena Yakobchuk/Shutterstock

As we gain deeper insight into the metabolic pathways that turn food and air into the electrochemical miracle of the human body, we also learn ways to maximize our physiological potential.

That insight becomes particularly relevant amid a global pandemic and the widespread prevalence of chronic disease. The torrent of stress we encounter each day can trigger a low-grade fight-or-flight response via the sympathetic nervous system and leave us increasingly fragile. Fortunately, we can also find ways to use certain kinds of stress to strengthen ourselves.