How stress affects your brain - Madhumita Murgia

Kako stres vpliva na možgane - Madhumita Murgia

Translator: Nika Kotnik Reviewer: Klavdija Cernilogar

Are you sleeping restlessly,

Nemirno spiš,

feeling irritable or moody,

si razdražljiv in slabe volje,

forgetting little things,

pozabljaš majhne stvari,

and feeling overwhelmed and isolated?

se ti zdi, da si preobremenjen in izoliran?

Don't worry. We've all been there.

Ne skrbi. Vsi smo to že doživeli.

You're probably just stressed out.

Najbrž si samo pod stresom.

Stress isn't always a bad thing.

Stres ni vedno nekaj slabega.

It can be handy for a burst of extra energy and focus,

Lahko je priročen za dodatni izbruh energije in osredotočenosti,

like when you're playing a competitive sport,

kot na primer pri tekmovalnem športu

or have to speak in public.

ali javnem nastopanju.

But when its continuous,

Ampak ko je stres neprestan,

the kind most of us face day in and day out,

tak kot ga doživlja večina od nas vsak dan,

it actually begins to change your brain.

dejansko začne spreminjati možgane.

Chronic stress,

Kroničen stres, kot na primer zgaranost ali napetosti doma,

like being overworked or having arguments at home,

can affect brain size,

lahko vpliva na velikost možganov,

its structure,

njihovo strukturo

and how it functions,

in funkcijo

right down to the level of your genes.

vse do genov.

Stress begins with something called

Stres se začne z osjo

the hypothalamus pituitary adrenal axis,

hipotalamus-hipofiza-nadledvične žleze (HPA),

a series of interactions

serijo interakcij

between endocrine glands in the brain and on the kidney,

med endokrinimi žlezami v možganih in nad ledvico,

which controls your body's reaction to stress.

ki nadzorujejo odziv na stres.

When your brain detects a stressful situation,

Ko možgani zaznajo stresno situacijo,

your HPA axis is instantly activated

je os HPA nemudoma aktivirana

and releases a hormone called cortisol, which primes your body for instant action.

in sprosti kortizol, hormon, ki pripravi telo na takojšnjo akcijo.

But high levels of cortisol over long periods of time

A visoka raven kortizola, ki traja dolgo časa,

wreak havoc on your brain.

uniči možgane.

For example, chronic stress increases the activity level

Na primer, kronični stres poveča aktivnost

and number of neural connections in the amygdala,

in število nevronskih povezav v amigdali,

your brain's fear center.

možganskem centru za strah.

And as levels of cortisol rise,

Ko se raven kortizola dviga,

electric signals in your hippocampus,

se električni signali v hipokampusu,

the part of the brain associated with learning, memories, and stress control,

delu možganov, ki je odgovoren za učenje, spomine in nadzor stresa,

deteriorate.

uničijo.

Hipokampus prav tako inhibira aktivnost HPA osi,

The hippocampus also inhibits the activity of the HPA axis,

so when it weakens,

tako da ko oslabi,

so does your ability to control your stress.

z njim oslabi tudi sposobnost nadziranja stresa.

That's not all, though.

To pa še ni vse.

Cortisol can literally cause your brain to shrink in size.

Kortizol lahko dobesedno skrči možgane.

Too much of it results in the loss of synaptic connections between neurons

Če ga je preveč, se sinaptične povezave med nevroni izgubijo

and the shrinking of your prefrontal cortex,

in prefrontalni korteks se skrči,

the part of your brain the regulates behaviors like concentration,

to je del možganov, ki je odgovoren za nadzor koncentracije,

decision-making,

odločanja,

judgement,

presoje,

and social interaction.

in socialnih interakcij.

It also leads to fewer new brain cells being made in the hippocampus.

Prav tako to vodi v nastanek manj novih celic v hipokampusu.

This means chronic stress might make it harder for you to learn

To pomeni, da kronični stres povzroči, da se težje učiš

and remember things,

in si težje zapomniš stvari

and also set the stage for more serious mental problems,

in prav tako lahko vodi v bolj resne duševne težave,

like depression and eventually Alzheimer's disease.

kot je depresija in sčasoma Alzheimerjeva bolezen.

The effects of stress may filter right down to your brain's DNA.

Učinki stresa morda segajo vse do DNK.

An experiment showed

Poskus je pokazal,

that the amount of nurturing a mother rat provides its newborn baby

da količina nege, ki jo mati podgana nudi svojemu novorojenčku,

plays a part in determining how that baby responds to stress later in life.

igra pomembno vlogo v odzivu tega mladička na stres kasneje v življenju.

The pups of nurturing moms turned out less sensitive to stress

Mladički z bolj ljubečimi mamami so bili manj občutljivi na stres,

because their brains developed more cortisol receptors,

ker so njihovi možgani razvili več receptorjev za kortizol,

which stick to cortisol and dampen the stress response.

ki se oprimejo kortizola in zmanjšajo odziv na stres.

The pups of negligent moms had the opposite outcome,

Mladiči neljubečih mam so imeli ravno nasproten izid

and so became more sensitive to stress throughout life.

in so tako postali bolj občutljivi na stres kasneje v življenju.

These are considered epigenetic changes,

To so epigenetske spremembe,

meaning that they effect which genes are expressed

kar pomeni, da vplivajo na izražanje genov,

without directly changing the genetic code.

ne da bi vplivale direktno na genski zapis.

And these changes can be reversed if the moms are swapped.

In te spremembe lahko obrnemo, če zamenjamo mame.

But there's a surprising result.

A tu je presenetljiv rezultat.

The epigenetic changes caused by one single mother rat

Epigenetske spremembe, ki jih povzroči ena sama podganja mama,

were passed down to many generations of rats after her.

so se prenesle na mnoge generacije podgan za njo.

In other words, the results of these actions were inheritable.

Z drugimi besedami, posledice teh dejanj so bile dedne.

It's not all bad news, though.

Ni pa vse tako slabo.

There are many ways to reverse what cortisol does to your stressed brain.

Veliko načinov obstaja, da spremenite učinek kortizola na možgane.

The most powerful weapons are exercise and meditation,

najbolj močni orožji sta gibanje in meditacija,

which involves breathing deeply

ki vključujeta globoko dihanje

and being aware and focused on your surroundings.

in zavedanje ter osredotočenost na svojo okolico.

Both of these activities decrease your stress

Obe aktivnosti zmanjšujeta stres

and increase the size of the hippocampus,

in povečata velikost hipokampusa,

thereby improving your memory.

in tako izboljšata spomin.

So don't feel defeated by the pressures of daily life.

Naj te pritiski v vsakdanjem življenju ne premagajo.

Get in control of your stress before it takes control of you.

Nadzoruj svoj stres, preden bo stres nadzoroval tebe.