Well Stressed: Manage Stress Before It Turns Toxic

234 Pages·2012·1.37 MB·English

by  Sonia Lupien

Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1: Do You Know the Meaning of Stress?
Stress Is Not the Same As Time Pressure
Chapter 2: Stress Is Really NUTS
What About Time Pressures?
Your Stress Recipe
Example 1. Stress in Children
Example 2. Stress in Adolescents
Example 3. Stress in Adults
Example 4. Stress in the Elderly
Now What?
Chapter 3: Acute Stress to Help Us Survive
Acute Stress and Survival of the Species
Acute Stress and Survival: Present-Day Examples
Absolute and Relative Stress
Eustress and Distress
Chapter 4: The Long and Winding Road to Chronic
Stress
Stage 1 of Chronic Stress: Derangement of Frontline Fighters
Stage 2 of Chronic Stress: Derangement of Rearguard Fighters
Comparing Apples and Pears
When the Heart Beats like Crazy
The Joys of Cholesterol
When Sugar Runs Wild
Why Do We Always Get Sick on Weekends or Just before
Leaving for a Holiday in Mexico?
Why Do We Sometimes Get the Flu When Getting a Flu Shot?
Chapter 5: Measuring the Weight of Chronic Stress:
The Allostatic Load Battery
What if All the Tools for Detecting Chronic Stress Were
Already in the Doctor's Bag?
Chapter 6: When Stress Affects Our Memory
Step 1: To Memorize a Piece of Information, You Have to Be
Vigilant
Acute Stress Increases Vigilance
Step 2: You Have to Select the Information You Want to
Memorize
At a Time of Acute Stress, the Only Relevant Information Is the
Threatening Information
Step 3: You Must Be Able to Do Two Things at Once
At a Time of Stress, You Keep Talking to Yourself . . .
When Chronic Stress Unsettles Our Ability to Detect Relevant
Information
Chapter 7: Why Are We So Stressed These Days?
Mammoths in the Morning Traffic
Time Marches On
The Joys of Interpretation
Chapter 8: Stress to Match Each Personality
Honing In on Hostility
Anxiety, or Fear of Being Afraid
Low Self-Esteem
Chapter 9: Two Sexes, Two Types of Stress?
When Stress Was Male
When Stress Became Female
The Dreaded PMS
Fight or Flight versus Tend and Befriend
Then What Are Husbands Good For?
A Hormone for Affiliation?
Of Fathers and Mothers
Chapter 10: Your Social Status, Your Stress
From Baboons to Humans
Socioeconomic Status: Jobs, Wages and Stress
Social Status: Power and Stress
The Cost of Dominance
The Paradox of Adolescents
Adolescence: When Popularity Becomes More Important Than
Wealth
Popularity, Intimidation and Stress
Chapter 11: Recognizing When You're Stressed
The Acute Stress Stage
The Pepto-Bismol Stage
The Rum and Coke Stage
The Final Stage: The Glass of Water Stage
Chapter 12: To Kill a Mammoth, You First Have to
Know Where to Find It
Jenny the Mammoth
We Reconstruct
Having Time versus Taking Time
Chapter 13: Addressing NUTS for Adolescents
DeStress for Success Program for Teens
How NUTS Became SPIN
Chapter 14: Addressing NUTS for Adult Workers
To Which NUTS Factor Are You Most Sensitive?
Stress, Performance and Presenteeism at Work
Management, Managers and Stress
A Company's Stress Flowchart
NUTS at the Point of Hire
Know the Employees Personally
A Note on Hostile Personalities and an Apology to Jenny
Anxious Personality and Low Self-Esteem
Swans and Eagles
Chapter 15: Fleeing the Mammoth Can Help Us
Control Our Stress
Chronic Stress and Tantrums
Avoidance: Use Sparingly
Chapter 16: The Power of Others
Social Support May Protect against Stress
Using Altruism to Combat Stress
Even Those Who Don't Talk Can Help
Chapter 17: Your Body Is Your Most Effective Ally
Breathe, Breathe, Breathe
The Belly and Singing
The Belly and Prayer
The Belly and Music
Get Rid of the Energy You've Mobilized!
Laughing at Stress
Don't Be Afraid of Stress
Heaven Helps Those Who Help Themselves?
Appendix 1: History of the Science of Stress
How “Looking Sick” Led to the Concept of Stress
The Discovery of Stress Hormones
The Discovery of a Wonder Drug
The Wonder Drug's Side Effects
It Becomes Known that the Brain Reacts to Stress Hormones
Psychology Takes Over the Notion of Stress
Each Person Handles Stressors Differently
The Crossroads: Psychology Meets Biology
Appendix 2: References
Chapter 1: Do You Know the Meaning of Stress?
Chapter 3: Acute Stress to Help Us Survive
Chapter 4: The Long and Winding Road to Chronic Stress
Chapter 5: Measuring the Weight of Chronic Stress: The
Allostatic Load Battery
Chapter 6: When Stress Affects Our Memory
Chapter 7: Why Are We So Stressed These Days?
Chapter 8: Stress to Match Each Personality
Chapter 9: Two Sexes, Two Types of Stress?
Chapter 10: Your Social Status, Your Stress
Chapter 11: Recognizing When You're Stressed
Chapter 12: To Kill a Mammoth, You First Have to Know
Where to Find It
Chapter 13: Addressing Nuts for Adolescents
Chapter 14: Addressing Nuts for Adult Workers
Chapter 15: Fleeing the Mammoth Can Help Us Control Our
Stress
Chapter 16: The Power of Others
Chapter 17: Your Body Is Your Most Effective Ally
Appendix 1: History of the Science of Stress
Notes
Chapter 2: Stress Is Really NUTS
Chapter 3: Acute Stress to Help Us Survive
Chapter 4: The Long and Winding Road to Chronic Stress
Chapter 6: When Stress Affects Our Memory
Chapter 8: Stress to Match Each Personality
Chapter 9: Two Sexes, Two Types of Stress?
Chapter 10: Your Social Status, Your Stress
Chapter 12: To Kill a Mammoth, You First Have to Know
Where to Find It
Chapter 14: Addressing Nuts for Adult Workers
Chapter 16: The Power of Others
Chapter 17: Your Body Is Your Most Effective Ally
Appendix 1: History of the Science of Stress
Index

Copyright © 2012 by Sonia Lupien All rights reserved. No part of this work
covered by the copyright herein may be reproduced or used in any form or by
any means—graphic, electronic or mechanical—without the prior written
permission of the publisher. Any request for photocopying, recording, taping or
information storage and retrieval systems of any part of this book shall be
directed in writing to the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (Access
Copyright). For an Access Copyright license, visit www.accesscopyright.ca or
call toll free 1-800-893-5777.
Care has been taken to trace ownership of copyright material contained in this
book. The publisher will gladly receive any information that will enable them to
rectify any reference or credit line in subsequent editions.
Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-
demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may
not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media
such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may
download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information
about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Data Lupien,
Sonia, 1965—
Well stressed: how you can manage stress before it turns toxic / Sonia Lupien.
Translation of: Par amour du stress.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Issued also in electronic format.
ISBN 978-1-118-27360-9
1. Stress management. 2. Stress (Psychology).
3. Stress (Physiology). I. Title.
RA785.L8613 2012 616.9′8 C2012-901340-4
978-1-118-27956-4 (ebk); 978-1-118-27955-7 (ebk); 978-1-118-57987-1 (ebk)
Production Credits Cover design: Adrian So
Typesetting: Thomson Digital
Cover image: Adrian So
Editorial Credits Executive editor: Robert Hickey