Life and stress
Most of us would like to be better at managing stress, especially if we cope through potentially damaging habits such as smoking or drinking. Robert Sapolsky is one of the foremost authorities in the field of stress. In his book, Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers,Sapolsky argues that we evolved for a very different stress environment than that which faces us today. He argues that in our evolutionary past we regularly faced serious, life-threatening situations (such as a predator attack or hostility with a neighbouring tribe over an important resource). Today our lives are much safer and our stressors much milder, but there are many of them – continual, recurring and irritating. We may find it hard to ‘escape’ from these stressors and their effects may build up over time. Sapolsky explores the role of stress in heart disease, diabetes, growth retardation, memory lossand auto-immune diseases such as multiple sclerosis. In attempting to decide why zebras do not get ulcers (or heart disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases), Sapolsky suggests that people develop such diseases partly because our bodies are not designed for the constant stresses of a modern-day life (like sitting in traffic jams or dealing with multiple conflicting demands). Instead, we seem better equipped to deal with the kind of short-term stress faced by a zebra, such as outrunning a lion! So why do we adapt to some stressful emergencies, while others make us sick? And why are some of us especially vulnerable to stress-related diseases? Is this related to features of our personalities? If so, are these features learned or innate? Humans today live long enough and are intelligent enough to engage with and even generate all sorts of stressful events. Sapolsky suggests that stress-related disease emerges, predominantly, from our chronic activation of a physiological system that has evolved to respond to acute physical emergencies. We seem able to turn on th e stress response not only in response to physical or psychological insults, but also by just thinking about potential stressors.
Stress may be characterized by non-constructive fretting and agonizing, and may generalize into more serious freefloating anxiety and panic attacks, which can interfere with daily living. Sapolsky highlights studies that suggest we do have some control over stress-related ailments. One strategy is ‘containment’. Simply set aside about 10–20 minutes each day for worrying! It is then easier to dispatch concerns from your mind for the remainder of your waking hours. Another technique is to put some constructive thought into how to better deal with problems during this ‘worry period’ rather than fretting in an unfocused manner. Another idea is to focus on living life in the present. According to this principle (related to Zen philosophy), we should strive constantly to enjoy each moment to its fullest. If you cannot live ‘in the moment’, there will always be other concerns on your mind. Finally, our overall attitude or ‘mindset’ can influence our responses to stressful situations. Realistically, life is never as bad as it seems during our darkest and most depressed moments, nor as wonderful as it seems during our happiest, most ecstatic moments. It is somewhere in between. A sage piece of advice might be: instead of worrying about relatively trivial matters, save your emotional energy for the really big problems in your life, because it is likely that there will be more than enough of those.
Sapolsky, R., 2003, ‘Taming stress’, Scientific American, 289 (3), 86–95.
Jamie Pennebaker (1950– ) is Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and has been involved in exploring the role of psychological factors in symptom perception. He has also promoted research into the impact of psychological factors on the immune system, and he has a particular interest in the links between traumaticexperiences, language, and physical and mental health. His studies find that time spent in simple writing and/or talking (including self-disclosure) can reduce time spent being seen by a physician, medical costs and alcohol use, and can increase work performance.
Most of us would like to be better at managing stress, especially if we cope through potentially damaging habits such as smoking or drinking. Robert Sapolsky is one of the foremost authorities in the field of stress. In his book, Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers,Sapolsky argues that we evolved for a very different stress environment than that which faces us today. He argues that in our evolutionary past we regularly faced serious, life-threatening situations (such as a predator attack or hostility with a neighbouring tribe over an important resource). Today our lives are much safer and our stressors much milder, but there are many of them – continual, recurring and irritating. We may find it hard to ‘escape’ from these stressors and their effects may build up over time. Sapolsky explores the role of stress in heart disease, diabetes, growth retardation, memory lossand auto-immune diseases such as multiple sclerosis. In attempting to decide why zebras do not get ulcers (or heart disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases), Sapolsky suggests that people develop such diseases partly because our bodies are not designed for the constant stresses of a modern-day life (like sitting in traffic jams or dealing with multiple conflicting demands). Instead, we seem better equipped to deal with the kind of short-term stress faced by a zebra, such as outrunning a lion! So why do we adapt to some stressful emergencies, while others make us sick? And why are some of us especially vulnerable to stress-related diseases? Is this related to features of our personalities? If so, are these features learned or innate? Humans today live long enough and are intelligent enough to engage with and even generate all sorts of stressful events. Sapolsky suggests that stress-related disease emerges, predominantly, from our chronic activation of a physiological system that has evolved to respond to acute physical emergencies. We seem able to turn on th e stress response not only in response to physical or psychological insults, but also by just thinking about potential stressors.
Stress may be characterized by non-constructive fretting and agonizing, and may generalize into more serious freefloating anxiety and panic attacks, which can interfere with daily living. Sapolsky highlights studies that suggest we do have some control over stress-related ailments. One strategy is ‘containment’. Simply set aside about 10–20 minutes each day for worrying! It is then easier to dispatch concerns from your mind for the remainder of your waking hours. Another technique is to put some constructive thought into how to better deal with problems during this ‘worry period’ rather than fretting in an unfocused manner. Another idea is to focus on living life in the present. According to this principle (related to Zen philosophy), we should strive constantly to enjoy each moment to its fullest. If you cannot live ‘in the moment’, there will always be other concerns on your mind. Finally, our overall attitude or ‘mindset’ can influence our responses to stressful situations. Realistically, life is never as bad as it seems during our darkest and most depressed moments, nor as wonderful as it seems during our happiest, most ecstatic moments. It is somewhere in between. A sage piece of advice might be: instead of worrying about relatively trivial matters, save your emotional energy for the really big problems in your life, because it is likely that there will be more than enough of those.
Sapolsky, R., 2003, ‘Taming stress’, Scientific American, 289 (3), 86–95.
Jamie Pennebaker (1950– ) is Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and has been involved in exploring the role of psychological factors in symptom perception. He has also promoted research into the impact of psychological factors on the immune system, and he has a particular interest in the links between traumaticexperiences, language, and physical and mental health. His studies find that time spent in simple writing and/or talking (including self-disclosure) can reduce time spent being seen by a physician, medical costs and alcohol use, and can increase work performance.
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