Acute stress is a healthy system doing exactly what it should. The problem is chronic activation — when the surge never resolves and your baseline quietly resets to high.
At that point ordinary things start costing more than they should. Sleep gets thinner. Digestion changes. Small frustrations produce reactions out of scale with them, which is embarrassing, which adds more stress.
Regulation is a skill, not a personality trait. It can be learned, practised and made reliable — including by people who are certain they are simply 'wired this way'.
How the work tends to go
Direct nervous-system work: grounding, breath, EFT tapping, mindful movement and guided imagery — practised in session until you can find your way back to settled on your own.
