Stress - Complications

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Health Professional Caregivers. Caregiving among health professionals is also a high risk factor for stress. One study, for example, found that registered nurses with low job control, high job demands, and low work-related social support experienced very dramatic health declines, both physically and emotionally.

Anxiety Disorders

People who are less emotionally stable or who have high anxiety levels tend to experience specific events more stressfully than others. Some doctors describe an exaggerated negative response to stress as "catastrophizing" the event (turning it into a catastrophe). However, research has found that patients with anxiety disorder do not have any differences in their actual physical response to stress (heart rate, blood pressure, release of stress hormones) compared to people without anxiety.

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Lacking a Social Network

The lack of an established network of family and friends predisposes a person to stress disorders and stress-related health problems, including heart disease and infections. Older people who maintain active relationships with their adult children are buffered against the adverse health effects of chronic stress-inducing situations, such as low income or lower social class. This may be because people who live alone are unable to discuss negative feelings to relieve their stress.

People who remain happy and healthy despite many life stresses typically have very good social support networks. Having a pet may help reduce medical problems that are aggravated by stress, including heart disease and high blood pressure.

Review Date: 10/14/2010
Reviewed By: Reviewed by: Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).