Stress Facts

Excerpted from: Conquering Stress by KRS Edstrom, M.S.
Introduction by Paul J. Rosch, M.D., F.A.C.P.
President, The American Institute of Stress

You Are, to Some Extent, What You Do

Whatever effect your job has on you is carried into the rest
of your life. Unfortunately, most of us regularly experience
job stress. One survey revealed that 75 percent of Americans
described their jobs as stressful. In 1991 a shocking one-third
(34 percent) of us even considered quitting out jobs because of
stress! This means most of us are carrying a great deal of
stress home each night, which is not exactly a health "plus".
In fact, many authorities consider job stress the major adult
health problem today.
   · Almost 90 percent of us experience high levels of stress at
     least once a week.
   · Seventy-five to 90 percent of all visits to primary-care
     physicians are for stress-related disorders.
     And it's not getting any better. The Mitchum Report on
     Stress in the 90s says that most Americans report being
     under much more stress now than five years ago.
   · Every week, 112 million people take medication for stress-
     related symptoms.
   · According to a recent nationwide poll, medications for
     stress-related headaches comprised 61 percent of all
     over-the-counter medications.
   · The top three prescription drugs are for stress-related,
     preventable, conditions.

Stress Costs You Money

Job stress is costing industry (and therefore you) a lot of money.
Look at these facts:
   · Job stress costs American industry more than $200 billion
     a year in absenteeism, lost productivity, accidents, and
     medical insurance.
   · Of all industrial accidents, 60 - 80 percent are due to
     stress incurred by workers.

A sobering seven in ten workers say job stress causes frequent
health problems. Job stress accounts for more than one-half of
the 550,000,000 work days lost annually because of absenteeism.
Workers say their companies are responsible for their stress and
they want compensation. Eighty-two percent think that burnout
victims deserve disability pay from their employers. And apparently
they are getting it - in epidemic portions.

Consequently, industry is suffering. Each case costs employers
and insurers an average of $73,270 for disability payments.
Industry complains that while some suits may be valid, everyone
is jumping on the money wagon and claiming anything and everything
as stress related.

Touch Therapy for Less Stress

As you now know, stress gets locked up in our bodies and causes more stress. The power of touch is well-documented from helping incubator babies and comatose patients to simple stress reduction.

Massage is a good way to release bound up negative energy incurred by stress in your body by manually relaxing the muscles to allow energy to flow to all parts of the body.

If you can't afford a massage, think about touching and being touched more. Remember the hug craze of the '80s? I never got into hugging strangers, but the concept is valid. With those whom you feel comfortable, you might exchange one-minute shoulder massages right at your desk.

Besides relaxing muscles, I believe there is a tangible field of positive energy that is transferred through touch that is therapeutic for body and soul.

Sharon