EMBRACE YOUR STRESS? Really? You know what, don’t just embrace it, LOVE IT! Have I gone crazy, perhaps, but not really. Let’s think it through.
You want to get a new job, you are invited to an interview, you did your homework, you are ready, excited, and you are stressed. You hope you were not, but you are. Another scenario: You nailed it and you got the job you wanted. Today is your first day at work. You are the new kid on the block, you checked your outfit, your hair, your shoes, your breath, your smile, you made sure to be on time and you are stressed. You hope you were not, but you are. Even another one: You have been congratulated on your performance during the first months at your new job, and you are invited to present your project to the Company Director, whom you’ve been told loved your ideas. You got everything double and triple checked, you are ready, you are excited and you are stressed. You hope you were not, but you are.
Your heart is pounding, your jaws are clenched, your hands are sweaty, you are breathing faster, your neck and shoulders are tight… why is this happening? if only you could ‘chill out’! A part of you says: I should have gone for a ‘less stressful job’! Really? Yes, of course, stress is bad for your health, that’s a fact, isn’t it? Well, maybe not.
According to Keller, Litzelman, Wisk, et al (2012, Wisconsin U), the answer is not that simple. Stress is bad for your health if you tell your brain that it is. Otherwise, it might actually be a good thing. I know this goes against everything we’ve heard, read, or thought for several years, but according to this study, done for eight years and tracking 30 thousand adults in the US, people who experienced a lot of stress during the last year would be more likely to die (43%) ONLY if they also thought stress was bad for their health. People with the same self-assessed levels of stress who did not think stress was bad for their health actually were less likely to die than those who reported lower levels of stress and believed it was harmful.
How come? It appears that if we change how we think about stress, i.e. if we change our mind about stress, OUR BODY RESPONSE TO STRESS CHANGES! Research shows (Jamieson, Nock & Mendes 2012, Harvard) that if we realize that quick breathing, sweaty forehead, or pounding heart are good things, our body acts accordingly. Our blood vessels stay relaxed even if our heartbeat increased, the levels of oxytocin would increase and we’d feel more inclined to look for help or to help others, and in general, we would be able to attain our objectives and develop our courage.
I want to invite you to see the conference by Kelly McGonigal: How to make stress your friend | TED Talk and get your own conclusions. Whatever they may be, please consider that the more we learn about neuroscience, the more we understand the power of thought.
I am ever more convinced that we might be very smart but our brains are very stupid (streetwise, I mean!) Our brains believe everything we say to it, no questions asked, and -the worst part- our brain then acts on whatever we feed it with! Henry Ford was absolutely right when he said “whether you think you can or you can’t, either way, you are right” So, let’s make sure we discipline ourselves to think about what is good for us.