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by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.
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Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

Condoms, IUDs, Viagra, The Pope, George W. Bush, Jesus, Mohammed, Tom Cruise, Jennifer Aniston and Stress

Friday May 26, 2006

What is the link between these products, religious icons and movie stars and stress? How in heaven's name (what a odd phrase!) does one juxtapose such disparate entities into an essay title? Have I gone 'round the bend,' as the Brits might say?

Not at all. The linkage is direct and important to understand. The connection between stress and the noted products, people, religious icons and movie stars could as well apply to almost anything, good or bad, that provokes a stress response. Thus, the title of this essay could as justifiably be, "Elephants, Beer, Carrots, Jerry Falwell, Dick Cheney, Buddha, The Loch Ness Monster, Michael Jackson And Sharon Stone." Or, ANY product, person, religious icon or movie star -- anything in the animal, mineral or vegetable categories. All can be stressful at times to some people, and some stimuli are a lot more stressful than others. It all depends. We respond differently to the same factors.

In summary, stress is inherent in nearly everything we encounter and the effect of the stress stimuli depends almost entirely on how we choose to respond to it. Since we are a celebrity-fixated society with hang-ups about sex and presently caught in a culture war on religion, I thought the examples chosen would make an eye-catching title. I could have picked other products, people and so on. Hope the ones I chose got your attention.

Are some people more vulnerable to stress than others? Absolutely, but this happens largely because of the programming to which they have been exposed, not the inherent nature of any given stress stimuli.

Initially, we start out more or less equally subject to stress. However, those who do not learn over time to recognize that they can control reactions to stress-inducing stimuli are more vulnerable to stress. This is especially true regarding the adverse consequences associated with negative stress. There are certain classes of people who are especially vulnerable. One such segment, owing to their relative inexperience in life and wide mood swings, is the adolescent.

Adolescents have had fewer life experiences than adults and thus enjoy less perspective, which, if otherwise, could mitigate the anxieties that accompany most stimuli.

In the next DR, I will summarize the unique nature of adolescent stress and what can be done to assist vulnerable youth to cope effectively with it. Meanwhile, be well, lighten up, be cool, try not to take things (including yourself) too seriously and always look on the bright side of life.

Domain: mental
Subdomain: stress management

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