Stress Relief Action Guide

As we have discussed previously, stress can adversely affect your health.  This has been proven by a study conducted in 1967 by psychiatrists Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe.  In their study, over 5,000 patients were asked to indicate how many of 43 life events they had experienced in the previous year.  By comparing their responses to their medical history, Holmes and Rahe were able to determine that these life events were linked to health.

What about you?  Take the following life stress inventory to find out how stress may impact your health.

Read each of the events listed below, and check the box next to any event which has occurred in your life in the last 12 months. There are no right or wrong answers. The aim is just to identify which of these events you have experienced lately. When you’ve gone through the entire list, the total should be automatically calculated by clicking on “Calculate results” button. You may also click “Reset” to take the inventory again at any time.

Life Events	Change Units
Death of spouse	100
Divorce	73
Marital separation	65
Jail term	63
Death of close family member	63
Personal injury or illness	53
Marriage	50
Fired at work	47
Marital reconciliation	45
Retirement	45
Change in health of a family member	44
Pregnancy	40
Sex Difficulties	39
Gain of new family member	39
Business readjustment	39
Change in financial state	38
Death of close friend	37
Change to different line of work	36
Change in number of arguments with spouse	35
Mortgage over $100,000	31
Foreclosure of mortgage or loan	30
Change in responsibilities at work	29
Son or daughter leaving home	29
Trouble with in-laws	29
Outstanding personal achievement	28
Wife begins or stops work	26
Begin or end school	26
Change in living conditions	25
Revision in personal habits	24
Trouble with boss	23
Change in work hours or conditions	20
Change in residence	20
Change in schools	20
Change in recreation	19
Change in church activities	19
Change in social activities	18
Mortgage or loan less than $30,000	17
Change in sleeping habits	16
Change in number of family get-togethers	15
Change in eating habits	15
Vacation	13
Christmas alone	12
Minor violations of the law	11

Your score is:

Adapted from Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, (1967). Vol. 11, pp. 213-218.

Next Section:

Managing Stress

Now that you have a good grasp as to how your stress occurs, you are in a position to develop a course of action to manage your stress.

Previous Step:

ABC Analysis

Take an inventory of the environmental events, your beliefs, and the consequences of these on your life.

Other Steps in this Section:

Determining Your Stress Level

Take time to determine how much stress is in your life and what effects it has on you.