How Hard Should I Push Myself?

Increase your sense of predictability

Rats that are exposed to repeated electric shocks are more likely to get ulcers. But if you ring a bell before you administer the shock—making the shock more predictable—the rats are less likely to get ulcers. If you make the stressor predictable, you only have to get stressed right before it happens. That mean... See more

Increase social support

Social support is the last coping strategy on the list, and it’s perhaps my favorite one.

If you give a primate a stressor in the lab, you’ll find elevated markers of stress in its behavior and in its blood. But give the primate a stressor when it’s surrounded by friends—its stress markers will be lower, even for the same lev... See more

Stress isn’t good or bad. It’s a tool. In small doses it’s good, but too much of a good thing becomes a bad thing pretty quickly.

If you put a human in a room where loud noises are going off, you’ll activate their stress response. If you give the human a button to reduce the volume of the loud noises they’ll be less stressed—regardless of whether they even use the button.

What that means is, just knowing you have the option to reduce stress is enough to make something less st... See more

Create outlets for frustration

When rats that are exposed to repeated stressors are given a piece of wood to gnaw on, they are far less likely to develop ulcers. Outlets for frustration are another important coping mechanism for stress.

There are many unproductive outlets—for example, taking things out on your partner or a co-worker. But there are ... See more