The Stress Curve: From Pressure to Panic. Understanding General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

Life throws challenges at us — sometimes one at a time, and sometimes all at once. Our ability to respond depends heavily on how our body and mind handle stress. Hans Selye, a pioneering endocrinologist, introduced the concept of General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) — a model describing how humans (and animals) respond to prolonged stress.

GAS unfolds in three stages — each with its own physical, emotional, and psychological markers. When stress isn’t resolved, it can lead to panic, and if left unchecked, even a breakdown.

🟢 1. Alarm Stage – The Shock & Alert

• What happens: The body detects a threat. The sympathetic nervous system (fight/flight) kicks in. Hormones like adrenaline and cortisol surge.
• Symptoms: Rapid heartbeat, shallow breathing, heightened alertness, muscle tension.
• Emotional signs: Sudden anxiety, tunnel vision, jumpiness, or even excitement.
• Mindset: “Something’s happening — I need to act now.”

🔹 This is your short-term survival mode — useful for immediate danger or deadlines.

🟡 2. Resistance Stage – Holding the Line

• What happens: The body tries to adapt. Cortisol stays elevated. You’re still under stress, but you’re managing — barely.
• Symptoms: Fatigue, irritability, forgetfulness, difficulty sleeping, loss of focus.
• Emotional signs: Frustration, emotional flatness, social withdrawal, or numbing.
• Mindset: “I just need to push through.”

🔹 People often live in this stage for weeks, months, or even years — constantly coping, never recovering. This is chronic stress, and it silently erodes health and resilience.

🔴 3. Exhaustion Stage – Collapse & Crisis

• What happens: The system crashes. Your body can no longer sustain the fight. Cortisol is depleted or dysregulated. Brain and body systems shut down or malfunction.
• Symptoms: Burnout, insomnia, panic attacks, frequent illness, digestive issues, emotional numbness, disassociation, and physical weakness.
• Emotional signs: Anxiety spirals, depression, hopelessness, panic, mental fog, feeling broken or stuck.
• Mindset: “I can’t do this anymore.”

🔺 At this point, you may experience panic — an acute fear or helplessness where everything feels like a threat. If the stressors and panic remain unresolved, the system enters breakdown.

⚫ Mental Breakdown – When the System Gives Up

• What happens: You lose the ability to function normally — mentally, emotionally, or physically. The body might enter freeze/shutdown mode (think polyvagal theory).
• Symptoms: Emotional collapse, deep depression, inability to get out of bed, no motivation, confusion, memory loss, even sui*idal thoughts.
• Mindset: “Nothing matters anymore. I feel disconnected from everything and everyone.”

Breakdown isn’t weakness — it’s the body and mind’s emergency stop to prevent permanent damage. But without rest, support, and healing practices, recovery becomes harder.

💡 The Way Out: Recovery Is Possible

The key to reversing the GAS cycle lies in:

• Restoring balance through quality sleep, gentle routines, and boundaries.
• Regulating the nervous system with breathwork, meditation, grounding practices, and somatic tools.
• Reconnecting with supportive relationships and self-compassion.
• Rebuilding resilience by respecting your limits and recharging often.

✨ Final Thought

Stress is not the enemy — unrelieved, chronic stress is. By recognizing which stage you’re in, and taking small, consistent steps toward recovery, you can avoid the tipping point of panic and breakdown.

You don’t have to collapse to learn how to rest. Your healing begins with awareness.