What's The Absolute Worst Thing For Your Health???

Stress!

"A women under stress is not immediately concerned with finding solutions to her problems but rather seeks relief by expressing herself and being understood."
John Gray

Have you ever googled "Stress"? I think it's got as many hits as "Love". I can't say I'm a huge fan of this topic because it perplexes me so much that I thought I would do some research. Wikipedia baffled me in it's scientific explanation about stress, followed by it's information on Causes, Symptoms, Immune Responses, etc... There are websites that break it down into categories, and sub-categories; there are public forums, online courses, you name it. That sure says a lot about society. We are actively seeking out answers about stress, what causes it and how to eliminate it; and we are seeking the meaning of love. Personally, I understand love a whole lot more than stress. 

I think what gets me the most about stress is that mentally, I rarely feel stressed. I usually don't know I'm stressed until something in my body shuts down, causing me to be immobile and left with no other option than to wave my white flag, and call in reinforcements. This may be caused by the fact that I am stubborn, independent and prefer doing things on my own, or it may be caused by sheer stupidity - I've yet to rule it out. 

I do know, however, that stress scares me the way cancer, a heart-attack, or an aneurism scare me. It doesn't thrill me with curiosity like say... spontaneous combustion might. I know that stress causes inflammation in our bodies, and inflammation is the leading cause of illness; I know that even though up until 3 weeks ago, I didn't feel stressed, I was stressed. Which means.... I'm causing inflammation in my own body, and opening the door to a lot of potential negative health problems. This, I'm not ok with. 

Here's where I begin to feel perplexed... 

I am a young, healthy, individual, who works out regularly, eats an amazing diet, takes time to myself on a daily basis, attends yoga when possible, meditates, has purpose, love, support, and a positive outlook on life. Yet, I grind my teeth so hard I go through mouthguards, twist my masseter muscles (jaw muscles), have traps so tight you need a chisel to break through them, feel fatigued, and get headaches - and that's just on the surface! So what's happening inside of my body?!?! And why is stress affecting me so badly? I don't have to get up and go to work in the morning, granted I work around the clock 24/7 for two very busy, little people, who aren't totally set on the idea of sleeping through the night yet; but at least I'm not rushing from one place to the next, and trying to run a household, run a medical clinic, spend quality time with my kids, and pretend to have a life, all while their dad is living in the deep North - That's stressful. And yes, having two young children in your presence non-stop, and constantly having to be on point while they're awake to potentially save their lives or your home from being destroyed and trying to reason with what may as well be drunks, with ever-shifting hormones, that can't make up their minds, want something one minute, but not the next; that scream and chase eachother up and down the hallways, and climb, and babble and...and..and... ok... maybe it is stressful - but how do I cope with it so it doesn't get the best of me and I don't end up ill and brittle in my late 30's; and don't have some crazy, hysterical moment where I lash out, act like a psycho and potentially end up in a psych-ward at some hospital? 

I have it better than most, I live in a beautiful home, with two amazing kids, have the ability to clean, or... not. I can go to the gym, or... not. Really... this shouldn't be taking so much out of me. So is it lack of sleep that's causing stress to have the one up on my body? Other than one week where the kids went to Florida with their dad, I have not slept a full night since November 2008. Sleep deprivation has a whole gambit of problems attached to it as well. Am I perhaps mistaking stress for sleep deprivation? Is one causing the other? Is this genetic? Which end is up? 

Thoughts anyone?
What do you do to eliminate stress in your day to day?