NATUROPATHIC DOCTOR IN ONTARIO
How Stress Affects Aging
How to Build Stress Resilience
Stress and Aging
Modern life can feel like a marathon of never-ending demands — from work deadlines and full calendars to managing family responsibilities and caring for aging parents. Most of us are living with chronic mild to moderate stress every day.
Interestingly, the problem isn’t stress itself. It’s the lack of recovery that follows it.
Our bodies are designed to experience challenges — and to rebuild afterward. When stress becomes constant, without the pause for rest and repair, it starts to accelerate the aging process and affect every aspect of our health, especially for women.
Stress and Women’s Health: Finding the Right Dose
A certain amount of stress is actually good for us. It builds stress resilience, supports brain health, and keeps our bodies adaptable. The key is finding the right balance — enough to challenge the body, but not so much that it becomes damaging.
This balance depends on:
The intensity of the stress
The duration of exposure
The type of stressor
Your personal capacity (which can vary over time and across life stages, especially in women experiencing hormonal transitions such as perimenopause or menopause)
When stress is mild to moderate, followed by recovery, it triggers beneficial cellular responses that keep us healthy and youthful.
The Science of Hormesis: Good Stress, Healthy Aging
Our bodies are built to adapt. Short, manageable bursts of stress — known as hormetic stressors — actually make us stronger. These exposures stimulate the body to heal, repair, and grow.
Without them, we become less resilient over time.
Examples of beneficial, hormetic stressors include:
Exercise, particularly interval or resistance training
Sauna therapy (heat stress) and cold therapy
Fasting (for women, ideally a 14-hour overnight fast, done safely and not on heavy exercise days)
Nutrient stress through phytonutrients — eating the rainbow of colorful fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices
When our cells encounter mild stress, they temporarily lose balance (homeostasis). In response, they activate powerful repair mechanisms to restore equilibrium:
Reduce oxidative and inflammatory damage
Repair DNA and damaged proteins
Regenerate mitochondria (our cellular energy factories)
Trigger autophagy — the recycling of old, inefficient cells
These processes slow biological aging and promote healthier, more efficient cells — but only when we allow recovery afterward.
A Great Podcast to Learn More About Healthy Stress
Stress Activates. Recovery Remodels.
Research shows that with a single exposure to mild stress, we can increase resilience by 20–25%. But with repeated cycles of stress and recovery, resilience can improve by up to 60–90%.
That’s not from pushing harder — it’s from balancing strain with restoration.
During recovery, the body:
Grows healthier new cells
Forms stronger neural connections
Repairs and remodels tissues
The recovery phase is where growth happens. Without it, even “good” stressors can become harmful.
The Power of Recovery: Beyond Sleep
Avoiding stress isn’t enough. We also need directed recovery practices — moments of deep rest that allow the brain and body to reset.
These are known as non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) practices and may include:
Meditation or guided breathwork
Yoga nidra or body scan meditations
Immersion in nature (without screens or multitasking)
Gentle mindfulness practices that calm the nervous system
Just as physical recovery builds stronger muscles, mental and emotional recovery builds a more resilient mind.
Building Everyday Stress Resilience for Healthy Aging
To support longevity and women’s health, consider weaving these evidence-informed stressors and recovery tools into your routine:
Beneficial Stressors
Exercise with intervals of intensity
Heat (sauna) and cold exposure
Intermittent fasting (customized to your hormonal and metabolic needs)
A colorful, plant-rich diet full of antioxidant phytonutrients
Recovery Practices
Meditation or yoga nidra
Nature immersion
Journaling or reflective rest
Adequate sleep and mindful downtime
Rethinking Burnout: Is It Too Much Stress — or Too Little Recovery?
So what this leads us to wonder:
Is burnout not the excess of stress, but instead the lack of recovery?
Many of us experience burnout during seasons when we’re juggling too many roles — managing demanding careers, raising children, caring for aging parents, or simply trying to keep up with the pace and sensory overload of modern life. But maybe the problem isn’t that we’re doing too much. Maybe it’s that we’re not pausing enough.
When someone takes a burnout leave from work, a few common things often happen:
Support with stress relief — through antidepressant or anti-anxiety medications, or natural supplements.
Time off to rest and allow the nervous system to reset.
Space for reflection — to reassess whether life aligns with personal needs, values, and priorities.
Small but consistent lifestyle changes — building habits that make the load sustainable (movement, downtime, boundaries, connection).
These are all forms of recovery — recharging.
Even if you’re not in burnout (or even close to it), now may be the perfect time to create micro-pauses in your life — small, consistent investments in yourself that allow you to recharge before depletion sets in.
After a marathon, we rest.
After a fast, we eat.
After emotional turmoil, we pause — through rest, reflection, or reconnection.
It’s the same principle at play: topping up your energetic bank account before you run into overdraft.
You can handle the stress — you were built for it.
You just also need to build in the recovery.
The Takeaway
Stress isn’t the enemy; it’s a necessary ingredient for growth, strength, and longevity. But without recovery, stress becomes wear and tear instead of transformation.
For women balancing busy lives, families, and careers, learning how to recover intentionally can be the difference between burnout and thriving.
If you’re feeling stuck in chronic stress mode or ready to support healthy aging through stress resilience, naturopathic care can help you find your balance — using lifestyle medicine, nutrition, and evidence-informed recovery strategies tailored to your needs.
👉 Book a consultation to learn how to strengthen your resilience, support your hormones, and age well — inside and out.
Dr. Sarah Goulding, Naturopathic Doctor
Dr. Sarah Goulding is a licensed naturopathic doctor in Ottawa Ontario and has a BSc in neuroscience and biology from Dalhousie University (2004), and did her 4-year naturopathic training at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (2010). She’s since accumulated over a decade of clinical experience, and refined her practice to focus on women’s health and digestion. She is licensed and registered as a Naturopathic Doctor in Ontario by The College of Naturopaths of Ontario (CONO) and is a member of the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors (CAND) and the Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors (OAND).
Dr. Sarah Goulding blends science and compassion, and acts as a personal health researcher to help you navigate your health. Tools that she uses include nutrition, supplements and botanicals, bioidentical hormones, and lifestyle modifications. The closer you get to the root cause, the gentler the therapies needed to resolve the issue.
Dr. Elizabeth Miller, Naturopathic Doctor
Dr. Miller completed her doctor or naturopathic medicine degree at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, and holds a Master’s and Bachelor’s of science in Human Health and Nutrition from the University of Guelph. Her extensive knowledge of nutrition and her strong foundation in scientific research allows for a very thorough approach to your care. She is licensed and registered as a Naturopathic Doctor in Ontario by The College of Naturopaths of Ontario (CONO) and is a member of the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors (CAND) and the Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors (OAND).
She is passionate about teaching holistic health to help women understand their bodies and get to the root cause of their health issues. Her areas of special interest include women’s health, hormonal health, gastrointestinal health, and pediatrics.
Dr. Janna Fung, Naturopathic Doctor
Dr. Janna Fung is a licensed naturopathic doctor with a special interest in dermatology and women’s health. She has a passion for evidence based preventative medicine and strives to empower patients with the knowledge to achieve their optimal health. She understands collaborations is the only way to develop realistic sustainable health/wellness results and strives to develop individualized health goals with patients.
