Your
Stress Scale
In the
following tables you can look up representative
changes in your life and see how much stress value
each of these changes is adding to your life. NOTE
ANY ITEM THAT YOU MAY HAVE EXPERIENCED IN THE LAST
TWELVE MONTHS. Then, total up your score. So get
ready with a pen/pencil and a paper.
(Adapted from
the "Social Readjustment Rating Scale" by Thomas
Holmes and Richard Rahe. This scale was first
published in the "Journal of Psychosomatic
Research", Copyright 1967, vol.II p. 214. It is
used by permission of Pergamon Press Ltd.)
STRESS
SCALE FOR ADULTS (20 years & above)
STRESS
|
EVENT VALUE
|
|
DEATH OF SPOUSE |
100 |
|
DIVORCE |
60 |
|
MENOPAUSE |
60 |
|
SEPARATION FROM LIVING
PARTNER |
60 |
|
JAIL TERM OR PROBATION |
60 |
|
DEATH OF CLOSE FAMILY
MEMBER OTHER THAN SPOUSE |
60 |
|
SERIOUS PERSONAL INJURY OR
ILLNESS |
45 |
|
MARRIAGE OR ESTABLISHING
LIFE PARTNERSHIP |
45 |
|
FIRED AT WORK |
45 |
|
MARITAL OR RELATIONSHIP
RECONCILIATION |
40 |
|
RETIREMENT |
40 |
|
CHANGE IN HEALTH OF
IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER |
40 |
|
WORK MORE THAN 40 HOURS PER
WEEK |
35 |
|
PREGNANCY OR CAUSING
PREGNANCY |
35 |
|
SEX DIFFICULTIES |
35 |
|
GAIN OF NEW FAMILY MEMBER |
35 |
|
BUSINESS OR WORK ROLE
CHANGE |
35 |
|
CHANGE IN FINANCIAL STATE |
35 |
|
DEATH OF A CLOSE FRIEND
(not a family member) |
30 |
|
CHANGE IN NUMBER OF
ARGUMENTS WITH SPOUSE OR LIFE PARTNER |
30 |
|
MORTGAGE OR LOAN FOR A
MAJOR PURPOSE |
25 |
|
FORECLOSURE OF MORTGAGE OR
LOAN |
25 |
|
SLEEP LESS THAN 8 HOURS PER
NIGHT |
25 |
|
CHANGE IN RESPONSIBILITIES
AT WORK |
25 |
|
TROUBLE WITH IN-LAWS, OR
WITH CHILDREN |
25 |
|
OUTSTANDING PERSONAL
ACHIEVEMENT |
25 |
|
SPOUSE BEGINS OR STOPS WORK |
20 |
|
BEGIN OR END SCHOOL |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN LIVING CONDITIONS
(visitors in the home, change in roommates,
remodeling house) |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN PERSONAL HABITS
(diet, exercise, smoking, etc.) |
20 |
|
CHRONIC ALLERGIES |
20 |
|
TROUBLE WITH BOSS |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN WORK HOURS OR
CONDITIONS |
15 |
|
MOVING TO NEW RESIDENCE |
15 |
|
PRESENTLY IN PRE-MENSTRUAL
PERIOD |
15 |
|
CHANGE IN SCHOOLS |
15 |
|
CHANGE IN RELIGIOUS
ACTIVITIES |
15 |
|
CHANGE IN SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
(more or less than before) |
15 |
|
MINOR FINANCIAL LOAN |
10 |
|
CHANGE IN FREQUENCY OF
FAMILY GET-TOGETHERS |
10 |
|
VACATION |
10 |
|
PRESENTLY IN WINTER HOLIDAY
SEASON |
10 |
|
MINOR VIOLATION OF THE LAW |
5 |
TOTAL
SCORE ___________________________
STRESS SCALE FOR YOUTHS
(13 - 19 years)
STRESS
|
EVENT VALUE
|
|
DEATH OF
SPOUSE, PARENT, BOYFRIEND/GIRLFRIEND |
100 |
|
DIVORCE (of
yourself or your parents) |
65 |
|
PUBERTY |
65 |
|
PREGNANCY
(or causing pregnancy) |
65 |
|
MARITAL
SEPARATION OR BREAKUP WITH
BOYFRIEND/GIRLFRIEND |
60 |
|
JAIL TERM
OR PROBATION |
60 |
|
DEATH OF
OTHER FAMILY MEMBER (other than spouse, parent
or boyfriend/girlfriend) |
60 |
|
BROKEN
ENGAGEMENT |
55 |
|
ENGAGEMENT |
50 |
|
SERIOUS
PERSONAL INJURY OR ILLNESS |
45 |
|
MARRIAGE |
45 |
|
ENTERING
COLLEGE OR BEGINNING NEXT LEVEL OF SCHOOL
(starting junior high or high school) |
45 |
|
CHANGE IN
INDEPENDENCE OR RESPONSIBILITY |
45 |
|
ANY DRUG
AND/OR ALCOHOL USE |
45 |
|
FIRED AT
WORK OR EXPELLED FROM SCHOOL/COLLEGE |
45 |
|
CHANGE IN
ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE |
45 |
|
RECONCILIATION WITH MATE, FAMILY OR
BOYFRIEND/GIRLFRIEND (getting back together) |
40 |
|
TROUBLE AT
SCHOOL/COLLEGE |
40 |
|
SERIOUS
HEALTH PROBLEM OF A FAMILY MEMBER |
40 |
|
WORKING
WHILE ATTENDING SCHOOL/COLLEGE |
35 |
|
WORKING
MORE THAN 40 HOURS PER WEEK |
35 |
|
CHANGING
COURSE OF STUDY |
35 |
|
CHANGE IN
FREQUENCY OF DATING |
35 |
|
SEXUAL
ADJUSTMENT PROBLEMS (confusion of sexual
identity) |
35 |
|
GAIN OF NEW
FAMILY MEMBER (new baby born or parent
remarries or adopts) |
35 |
|
CHANGE IN
WORK RESPONSIBILITIES |
35 |
|
CHANGE IN
FINANCIAL STATE |
30 |
|
DEATH OF A
CLOSE FRIEND (not a family member) |
30 |
|
CHANGE TO A
DIFFERENT KIND OF WORK |
30 |
|
CHANGE IN
NUMBER OF ARGUMENTS WITH MATE, FAMILY OR
FRIENDS |
30 |
|
SLEEP LESS
THAN 8 HOURS PER NIGHT |
25 |
|
TROUBLE
WITH IN-LAWS OR BOYFRIEND'S OR GIRLFRIEND'S
FAMILY |
25 |
|
OUTSTANDING
PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENT (awards, grades, etc.) |
25 |
|
MATE OR
PARENTS START OR STOP WORKING |
20 |
|
BEGIN OR
END SCHOOL/COLLEGE |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN
LIVING CONDITIONS (visitors in the home,
remodeling house, change in roommates) |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN
PERSONAL HABITS (start or stop a habit like
smoking or dieting) |
20 |
|
CHRONIC
ALLERGIES |
20 |
|
TROUBLE
WITH THE BOSS |
20 |
|
CHANGE IN
WORK HOURS |
15 |
|
CHANGE IN
RESIDENCE |
15 |
|
CHANGE TO A
NEW SCHOOL /COLLEGE |
10 |
|
PRESENTLY
IN PRE-MENSTRUAL PERIOD |
15 |
|
CHANGE IN
RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY |
15 |
|
GOING IN
DEBT (you or your family) |
10 |
|
CHANGE IN
FREQUENCY OF FAMILY GATHERINGS |
10 |
|
VACATION |
10 |
|
PRESENTLY
IN WINTER HOLIDAY SEASON |
10 |
|
MINOR
VIOLATION OF THE LAW |
5 |
TOTAL
SCORE ____________________________
You have been
asked to look at the last twelve months of changes
in your life. This may surprise you. It is crucial
to understand, however, that a major change in
your life has effects that carry over for long
periods of time. It is like dropping a rock into a
pond. After the initial splash, you will
experience ripples of stress. And these ripples
may continue in your life for at least a year.
So in general, if you have experienced
total stress score/value within the last twelve months of
150 to 300, you may be moderately OVERSTRESSED. If
you have experienced total stress
score/value above 300, then you may be
highly OVERSTRESSED. High scores have been
correlated with susceptibility to illness and
accidents in large group studies.
OVERSTRESS will make you
sick. Carrying too heavy a stress load is like
running your car engine past the red line; or
leaving your toaster stuck in the "on" position;
or running a nuclear reactor past maximum
permissible power. Sooner or later, something will
break, burnout, or melt down.
What
breaks depends on where the weak links are in
your physical body. And this is largely an inherited
characteristic.
Here are the common "weak
links", and the symptoms of their malfunction
-
Brain
Overstress: Fatigue, aches and pains,
crying spells, depression, anxiety attacks,
sleep disturbance
-
-
Gastrointestinal
Tract:
Hyperacidity, ulcer,
cramps and diarrhea, colitis, irritable bowel
syndrome
-
-
Glandular
System:
Thyroid gland malfunction
-
-
Cardiovascular
System:
High blood pressure, heart attack, high pulse,
abnormal heart beat, stroke
-
-
Skin
Condition: Itchy skin rashes
-
-
Immune
System:
Decreased resistance to infections and neoplasm
(tumor/cancer)
-
We
have known for a long time that OVERSTRESS could
cause physical damage to the gastrointestinal
tract, glandular system, skin or cardiovascular
system. But only recently have we learned that
OVERSTRESS actually causes physical changes
in the brain. One of the most exciting medical
advances of our decade has been an understanding
of how OVERSTRESS physically affects your brain.
We now know that the fatigue, aches and pains,
crying spells, depression, anxiety attacks and
sleep disturbances of OVERSTRESS are caused
by brain CHEMICAL MALFUNCTION, which are basically
due to lack of stress management skills, and
also due to negative perception towards self
and life.
You
can
call me at
91-09821178259 for details and
appointment.
You can also contact me
at
Dr@MentalHealthIndia.net
for queries.
|
