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Stress and Your Health: How Stress Affects Your Immune System and More

Here’s some important information on the role of stress in your body’s functioning, and some valuable tools to get you started on the road of maximum health.
Surgery Stress Relief Techniques
Having surgery can bring a lot of stress. Aside from worrying about potential complications, even minor surgery (if there is such a thing) involves risk and requires recovery time. Here's how to relieve some of the stress from surgery, and speed healing, too!
Doctor-Patient Stress Relief
The doctor-patient relationship is a very important one. Dealing with health issues, whether major or routine, can be stressful, and the relationship you have with your doctor can exacerbate or minimize some of that stress. The doctor-patient relationship, and doctor-patient communication, can impact how you feel about yourself during a vulnerable time, and can affect your health in several ways as well. Read more about that here.
Do's and 'Don't's of Anger Management
Dealing with anger is something we all do. Well-managed anger can be a catalyst for positive change, while poorly handled anger can cause relationship and health problems, and stress in one's life. Here are some simple and effective strategies for dealing with anger.
Anger Problems - Effects of Poorly Managed Anger
Anger problems can affect your health, your happiness and your life. Learn more about the research behind anger and what type of anger problems people experience as a result of poorly managed anger. You'll also find effective anger management resources.
The Effects of Anger and Stress
Anger and stress can both be damaging to your health. Because anger and stress have several common threads, managing them can be simpler if you understand the connection. Learn more about managing anger and stress.
Stress and Health: How Stress Affects Your Body, and How You Can Stay Healthier
Learn about the different types of stress and how they can affect your body and health, plus find resources on how to reduce the level of stress in your life and manage the stress you experience.
Is Your Level of Stress Unhealthy? The Stress and Health Self Test
Stress can affect your health in significant ways. While this test is not meant to replace an assessment from your doctor, it can give you an idea of whether your level of stress may be impacting your health, and to what degree. More importantly, you'll find information explaining how stress affects health, and important resources for creating a healthier, more balanced lifestyle.
Stress and Health Quiz: How Does Stress Affect Your Health?
You may have already learned from this site or other sources that stress can affect your health in a negative way, but do you know exactly how? This quiz is designed to test your knowledge, pique your interest, and inform you on the connection between stress and your body. Topics include cortisol, sleep deprivation, and other factors.
Stress and Womens Health: Reduce Stress and Stay Healthy
Stress affects womens health in many ways. Choosing the right ways to relieve stress and making the right choices for a healthy lifestyle is very important for women, and women's choices may be different from men's because women are different. Learn more about stress and womens health, the special issues that women deal with, and ways women can relieve stress and stay healthy.
Stress-Related Conditions: What Are They?
Stress can affect the body in so many ways! Here's a list of various health problems that can be caused or exacerbated by stress, including heart disease, stroke, sexual dysfunction and more.
Cortisol and Stress: How Cortisol Affects Your Body, and How To Stay Healthy in the Face of Stress
Cortisol is known as 'the stress hormone' because stress activates cortisol secretion. While it is important in proper body functioning, too much cortisol in your bloodstream can lead to serious health consequences. Learn more about cortisol, the effects of cortisol, and how to stay healthy in the face of stress.
Job Stress: Chronic Job Stress is a Risk Factor for Heart Disease and Diabetes
Recent studies have found a link between chronic job stress and metabolic syndrome, a cluster of health factors that increase the risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other health conditions. Learn what you can do to reduce work-related stress and stay healthier.
Stress Management: A Natural Way To Avoid Colds and the Flu, and Stay Healthy
You may be getting flu shots, taking vitamins and washing your hands, but practicing stress management techniques is an important and all-natural way to stay healthy during cold and flu season and avoid more serious health problems year round. Learn more about how stress can affect your health, the link between stress and sickness, and what you can do to avoid illness and stay healthier.
Stress and Weight Gain: Can Stress Make You Fat?
Stress and weight gain are linked in several ways. Cortisol, emotional eating, and lack of exercise are all factors. Learn how stress and weight gain are linked, and find resources for creating healthier lifestyle that reduces both your stress level and your weight.
Strategies to Sharpen Thinking Skills
While stress can negatively impact your thinking skills, contributing to memory problems and fuzzy thinking, these techniques have been shown by research to sharpen thinking skills and cognitive functioning while relieving stress and bringing other health benefits at the same time. Learn effective and natural strategies for relieving stress and improving your thinking skills.
Body Care: Why You Should Take Care Of Your Body and Your Health
If your health fails, it can overshadow everything else that’s going on in your life. From major health problems to minor aches and pains, health can really impact happiness and stress levels. Making a commitment for body care and wellness has a big payoff: you’ll feel better in everything you do. Here are a few healthy habits that carry a big impact:
Help! What Are Some Effective Strategies For Coping With Illness?
When diagnosed with a serious condition, stress can increase the difficulty of coping with illness. And, according to a recent poll on this site, a significant percentage of people believe that stress may be at least in part responsible for a serious illness. For these reasons, it's important to have effective stress relievers and coping strategies in place to stay as healthy as possible. Find key strategies for coping with illness, with additional resources for healthy living.
How Can I Prevent Stress-Related Psychosomatic Illness? Is It In My Head?
It's pretty common knowledge that stress can make you sick. However, should psychosomatic illness due to stress be ignored, or treated just like other health problem? How can it be prevented? Get answers to frequently asked questions about stress and psychosomatic illness, and learn to be healthier and happier.
Socioeconomic Status and Stress Levels: How Are They Related?
Many people expect that income levels and job stress levels are related: those with higher-powered jobs must experience additional job-related stress, right? The opposite is actually true! Learn how socioeconomic status affects stress levels, to what degree, and how everyone can decrease their stress levels and improve health
Exercise as a Stress Management Tool: Improve Your Mood, Boost Immunity, Look Better and Relieve Stress with Exercise
While exercise can help your overall health and longevity, and assist you with weight-loss goals, physical exercise has many stress management benefits as well. Learn why working out and getting more physical activity in your life can help you relieve tension and manage stress with increased endorphins, social support, improved immunity and other positive benefits of exercise. Not only will you be more relaxed and happy, you’ll be healthier as well.
Stress, Humor and Health: How Laughter Can Reduce Stress and Increase Health
Research shows that laughter has some amazing health benefits. Laughing can relieve stress, increase pain tolerance and support the immune system, as well as serve several other healthy purposes. Learn more about the positive effects of laughter and how to use humor to relieve tension, manage stress and improve overall health and well-being.
Caffeine, Stress and Your Health: Is Caffeine Your Friend or Your Foe?
Caffeine is a drug, popularly consumed in coffee, tea, soft drinks and, in smaller doses, chocolate. While we seem to have a love affair with these products, there’s been quite a bit of confusion and even controversy surrounding caffeine lately. Is it good or bad for us? Here’s a brief tutorial on caffeine, and some surprising answers to these questions.
Stress and Health Problems
It’s widely recognized that stress affects your health. Here is a breakdown on the specific health problems that can be caused or worsened by stress, with an explanation of how this happens.
Find Your “Real Age”
Sure, you know how long you’ve been on the planet, but do you really know how much your body has aged in this time? This site discusses how your actions can cause more or less wear and tear on your body, and includes a thorough test you can take to see what your ‘real age’ is! It also gives you a personalized plan to lower your stress and make your body healthier.
Dr. Judith Orloff on Positive Energy
Dr. Judith Orloff explains what ‘intuitive empathy’ is, and how it can make us healthier, happier and less stressed. This article can be helpful on several levels.
Toxic Emotions
Learn how harmful emotional states can cause stress that causes baldness, ulcers, high blood pressure and other health problems, and what you can do to release these toxic emotions.
Eight Indicators of Stress Level
Research shows that chronic stress can create physical changes like weaker muscles, bone loss, increased abdominal fat and weaker immune function. Read more about the physical signs of chronic stress, and some of what you can do to counteract these effects.
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