stressmanagementscience-blog

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Thank You All!

Thank you all for looking at my blog and giving such positive feedback! I truly appreciate all of the kind words! :)

-Brandon Doughty

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Does Your Mothers Stress Affect You in the Womb?

This article was interesting. It used many scientific studies to show that women who were stressed while pregnant ended up giving birth to children who were more likely to develop obesity or type 2 diabetes later on in their lives.

Although this might not be relevant to us currently, it may be good to know later on in our lives so that we know not to be stressed or make our significant other stressed for the sake of our child's future. 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130730091359.htm 

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Do animals help relieve your stress? If so, in what manner?

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Male Researchers Stress Out Lab Rats

Not sure if anyone heard about this recent finding, but lab tests have recently shown that male scientists tend to stress out lab rats more than female scientists, and since this is a stress management class I thought this might be slightly relevant even if it doesn't pertain to humans in particular.

This is an important finding because we use rats for many different studies and have for decades, and most of them have probably been under the supervision of male researchers. This could have potentially altered past research findings which means some of the recent results we've found by studying rats might be slightly thrown off by the stress hormones they were experiencing while being tested by males. If you wish to read more about this interesting and rather intriguing discovery, the link as always is below:

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/male-researchers-stress-out-lab-rodents

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Should Pot be Used to Relieve Stress?

A rather large number of my friends would answer 'yes' to the question listed above. I only know a select few that I've met throughout my lifetime who have never used pot or alcohol, including myself. 

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/how-do-life/201404/is-it-time-moderate-your-substance-abuse

This article above presents many different findings regarding marijuana and alcohol use that I did not previously know beforehand, such as marijuana being linked to early onset heart attacks and stroke. Here's an excerpt from the article that I found intriguing considering I'll bet it applies to many who choose to use pot as a stress reliever:

"Especially in today’s tough times, many people crave “a little something” to cope with life’s stresses. That’s understandable. And it may be easier and more convenient to get drunk or high than, for example, to take a hike and be one with nature. If your life sucks, you figure, 'What the hell. Let me dull the pain.'"

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Favorite Quote

I have the first part of this quote tattooed on my back, as it is one that reminds me to slow down and not take life too seriously or get stressed over the little things. Do any of you have a favorite quote that has this same effect on you?

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Personally, going to hardcore shows as well as performing with my band are some of the best stress relievers for me. I'm curious, what is it that truly takes YOUR stress away?

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Early Stress Leads to Adulthood Anxiety

Many of us today are constantly eating "comfort" foods such as peanut butter, ice cream, chocolate, etc. I am also guilty of constantly finding pleasure in these foods and can't seem to find a way to get away from them so often.

New scientific research presented in 2013 show that if babies are exposed to high amounts of stress within their first few days of being alive they are very likely to gain a preference for these comfort foods later on in life as they help to reduce these stress hormones we developed early on that are still affecting us in adulthood. The full research findings can be found at the link below:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130730091401.htm 

Have any of you considered this possibility before? I know I certainly didn't, which made the findings presented in this article much more intriguing to me. Maybe I was exposed to high of amounts of stress within my first few days of being alive, who knows! It might help to explain why I can't stop eating these comfort foods though. 

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

Do you think living near the coast helps people to relax? Turns out, quite possibly!

http://www.livescience.com/37819-health-benefits-living-near-ocean.html 

[stressmanagementscience-blog]

When Should We Make Decisions?

Have you ever made a quick decision that you later would regret? I'm sure we all have at one time or another. No one is perfect and everyone certainly makes mistakes that we sometimes regret later on. That's all a part of being human.

Sometimes we don't sit back and analyze a situation or decision properly and end up paying the price for it. After making what seems like an infinite amount of these mistakes, does it cause us to change how we react to these situations in the future?

Dr. Marcia Reynolds, Psy.D., published an article on the Psychology Today web-site that I have attached here on the bottom of this post that contains specific instructions thoroughly thought out that pertain to this subject and help better our planning for future decisions we may be faced with. She also cites important studies that discussed how our moral compass tends to be more accurate in the morning as opposed to later on in the day. I certainly think this article is worth taking a look at; you never know if these tips could one day save you from making a rash decision that you might end up regretting!

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wander-woman/201404/when-you-should-never-make-decision