How Frustration Ages the Body—and What You Can Do About It
Walking across the dry grass between the college dorms, I was on my way to see Sherry; we were both married to football players at BYU and had become pals. As I poked my head in, at first sight it looked like she was cleaning up a crime scene. But she was smiling as she mopped through the sticky red sludge.
She had just made a strawberry pie for her hulk-of-a-husband but, as she was moving it off the stove to the counter, she dropped it. It splattered across the kitchen floor as if it knew its assignment was to cover every inch of the floor.
She had spent hours making a strawberry pie from scratch, and before anyone had a bite of it, it was on the floor. What amazed me wasn’t the mess—it was her reaction. She laughed it off. She wasn’t angry or flustered. There was no frustration or regret for the loss of all her efforts.
I still remember that very moment. It was a crystal-clear realization that there was a skill I needed to have. I wanted to learn how to respond like that—to manage frustration with calm.
The Link Between Frustration and Aging
We all experience frustration—when things don’t go our way or expectations fall short. But when it becomes chronic, it triggers the stress response in our body. This leads to the release of hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
Short bursts of stress can be useful (say, running to get out of the way). But when stress becomes constant, the body's processes speed up causing premature aging.
How Stress and Frustration Accelerate Aging
Chronic frustration affects your body in several key ways:
- Shortens telomeres – These are protective caps on your DNA. Stress speeds up their shortening, which is linked to premature aging.
- Increases inflammation – This can worsen many conditions, from arthritis to skin aging.
- Weakens your immune system – Making you more susceptible to illness.
- Contributes to chronic diseases – Including heart disease, diabetes, and depression.
Want to dig deeper into this science? Check out our post: Is It Too Late To Reverse Skin Aging?
How to Stop Frustration from Aging You
Awareness is your first defense. Once you feel frustration rising, try one of these:
- Stand up and stretch –reset your nervous system. Use tools from my Master Your Chakras Training System
- Ground yourself –on your own or with my free guided grounding meditation.
- Step outside & breathe deeply – just 1 minute can shift your energy
- Call an emotionally balanced friend – the one who truly sees you. Not the one who likes to gossip.
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Meditate daily – 5–10 minutes a day builds long-term resilience
- Don't take it personally, free yourself from carrying this toxic load.
Need support developing these habits? Let's do a 1:1 session and set up a personalized plan.
Final Thoughts: Your Health Is Worth It
Frustration can come to us naturally—but chronic frustration lowers your energetic frequency. By taking small daily actions to regulate your emotions you’re not just improving your mood—you’re preserving your youth, your health, and your joy. Your energetic frequency rises back up, you have more healing energy available to heal your body.
Marcus Aurelius, or as I like to call him; "my boyfriend" (in my mind, he's just so sexy. I digress) called it equanimity--remaining calm and collected no matter what is going on around us.
So next time life gets messy (or your strawberry pie hits the floor), remember: Your calm is your superpower.
