Do you feel stressed out even when your life is going well? Do you feel anxious after happy events? If you answered yes, you may have always felt that there is something wrong with you. How will you ever learn to manage anxiety if even the good times cause you stress? Believe it or not, you are not alone. Researchers are finding out why some people can feel happy and stressed out at the same time.
The hormone cortisol has long been associated with stress. Scientists believe that cortisol levels rise during stressful times then decrease as stress decreases. For some people, researchers are finding, cortisol levels may also rise during what usually have been considered stressless times.
Dr. Janice Kiecolt-Glaser has led a group of researchers at Ohio State University in a 10-year study of stress and hormone levels. Ten years ago, a group of 90 newlyweds were asked to complete questionnaires about disagreements in their marriages. Blood samples were taken from these participants at 30-minute intervals during the study. Initial analysis of these samples showed a change in hormone levels that the researchers associated with weakened immune systems.
Ten years after the study, researchers have analyzed the blood samples once again and have made a new discovery. During the study, the participants were asked to discuss the history of their relationships. For most participants, these were positive discussions about good memories: how they met, why they were attracted to each other, etc. These positive discussions followed the stressful discussions about marital disagreements. Blood samples were drawn directly after these discussions. In the new analysis of these samples, researchers found that for most participants (75 percent), cortisol levels dropped during these positive discussions. However, for 25 percent of participants, cortisol levels remained the same as those following the stressful discussions. For some participants, the cortisol levels even increased further.
The increased cortisol levels have further significance in light of follow-up questions asked by researchers ten years after the original study. Women who had experienced the increased cortisol levels were two times more likely to be divorced than the other participants. The same did not hold true for the men with increased cortisol levels.
The differences between men and women showed up in other ways, as well. Three-fourths of the men in the study experienced a drop in cortisol levels. Researchers found that these men were prone to using more positive terms to describe their relationship. For the women who experienced a drop in cortisol levels, positive word choice was not significant. However, for women whose cortisol levels stayed the same or increased, the use of negative terms was significant.
The findings of this study show the importance of further research into stress levels during both positive and negative situations. Because increased cortisol levels can weaken the immune system and lead to a variety of illnesses, it is a priority to pinpoint causes of stress as well as possible solutions.
This study was presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association on August 4, 2000. Click here to visit Janice Kiecolt-Glaser's Web site.