The End of Stress as We Know It - Hardcover

McEwen, Bruce; Lasley, Elizabeth Norton; Lasley, Elizabeth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0309076404 ISBN 13: 9780309076401

Publisher: Joseph Henry Pr, 2002

Synopsis

McEwen (neuroendocrinology researcher, Rockefeller U., New York City) draws on extensive research, including his own, to explain the role of stress (or "allostatic load") in our lives and how to use it to good effect rather than be injured by it. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

About this title

Book Description

There's a whole new way to think about stress. Sure, some stress is inevitable, but being "stressed out" isn't. In fact, we can learn to rechannel the powerful stress activators in our lives to make us even more effective.

Hamlet spoke of "suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune." These days we simply use the word "stress" to describe that feeling. And if you ask 10 random people if they feel stressed, chances are that at least 9 will reply with a resounding, "Yes!" Indeed, the very way we use the word implies that we are its victims—as in, "I'm under so much stress" or "I'm completely stressed out." There’s now a better way to look at this picture, a way to move from victim to victor. The first step is to look to the science behind it all because in the science lies a whole new message about stress. Science allows us to understand what the stress response is and why our bodies react the way they do. Like all living creatures, we're mapped to respond instinctually in certain ways, and generally for good reasons. We know, for example, that in times of emergency, we effortlessly shift into a different biological mode. Based on our perception of the crisis, our brains initiate the "stress response" or the "flight-or-fight reaction." Our attention becomes keenly focused. Our heart and lungs accelerate to ready us for action. Our glands mobilize extra energy resources and summon the immune system to battle stations. This whole process is Nature's way of empowering us to respond swiftly, sometimes dramatically, to sudden events, while remaining mentally alert and physically prepared to meet a challenge.

But what if the crisis situation does not present us with a foe to be fought? Or if fleeing is not the answer? Too often in modern times, the situations that bring on the stress response require neither the fight nor flight response for which our bodies are genetically programmed. The stress response is nevertheless likely to kick in—just as it's programmed to do—even though it cannot help speed us toward a resolution. Deprived of its natural successful result, the very system that’s designed to protect us begins to cause wear and tear on our bodies—actually bringing on illnesses as diverse and severe as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, ulcers, and increased susceptibility to colds and infections.

The good news is that there are definite things that we can do to prevent this process from ultimately taking this wrong turn. New research in brain functioning allows us to understand the reactions our bodies have to various stressful circumstances. That knowledge is power—the power to harness the energy stored within us and to channel it in positive ways. The End of Stress as We Know It leads us to a new appreciation of the mind–body connection so that we learn how to reduce stress and increase our overall sense of health and well-being—and even turn aside the slings and arrows of life.

Co-published with the Dana Press.

From the Inside Flap

"You think you know what stress is, but not like you will after you've read The End of Stress as We Know It. Bruce McEwen, arguably the world's most renowned expert on the biology of stress, tells you everything you need to know, including ways of dealing with stress. It's very informative, and a great read." -- Joseph LeDoux, Henry and Lucy Moses Professor of Science, NYU, and author of Synaptic Self and The Emotional Brain

"Famed stress researcher Bruce McEwen draws on a vast amount of research (much of it his own) to explain in everyday language everything you need to know in order to make your life less stressful. Most encouraging are his suggestions for transforming unavoidable stresses into challenges, and his finding that 'a healthy attitude can confer a high degree of protection and resilience, despite one’s circumstances.'" -- Richard Restak, M.D., author of Secret Life of the Brain and Mozart's Brain and the Fighter Pilot

"This is a rare and delightful kind of book. It is serious science, the psychology and biology of stress, explained by a leading neuroscientist. But it is also engaging and accessible, and it reads like a novel. If one wants to explore the legitimate science of this area, and also understand it, this is the book to read." -- Larry R. Squire, Professor of Psychiatry, Neurosciences, and Psychology at the University of California, San Diego, and Career Research Scientist at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Diego

"Bruce McEwen's book tells us how thoughts and emotions get into the body to influence health. This outstanding scholar gives us a grand tour of the world of stress, based on the author’s groundbreaking research; he tells us what stress does to us and how we can keep ourselves from being stressed out. An outstanding volume by a premier researcher, he is articulate and entertaining. Highly recommended!" -- Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, Ph.D., and Ronald Glaser, Ph.D., Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research Ohio, State University College of Medicine

About this edition

• Publisher: Joseph Henry Pr
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0309076404
• ISBN 13: 9780309076401
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 285