Stress!
By Mark Farmer
I'm sure most people, at one time or another, have seen the Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale, a test of 100 question, shown below, that rates stressful factors in a person's life.
The Scale is meant to measure major positive and negative events that might occur in a person's life. It is intended to calculate the amount of stress in a person's life and place it on a relative scale.
The "test" should be taken with a grain of salt, a person with a high stress level shouldn't fret too much: it's not how much stress you have, what matters in the end is how well you handle it!
The Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale
Scroll through the list of life events below, adding up the numbers located after events that you have expreienced in the last year:
Death of spouse 100
Divorce 73
Marital separation from mate 65
Detention in jail, other institution 63
Death of a close family member 63
Major personal injury or illness 53
Marriage 50
Fired from work 47
Marital reconciliation 45
Retirement 45
Major change in the health or
behavior of a family member 44
Pregnancy 40
Sexual difficulties 39
Gaining a new family member
(e.g., through birth, adoption, oldster moving, etc.) 39
Major business re-adjustment
(e.g., merger, reorganization, bankruptcy) 39
Major change in financial status 38
Death of close friend 37
Change to different line of work 36
Major change in the number of
arguments with spouse 35
Taking out a mortgage or loan
for a major purchase 31
Foreclosure on a mortgage or loan 30
Major change in responsibilities at work 29
Son or daughter leaving home
(e.g., marriage, attending college) 29
Trouble with In-laws 29
Outstanding personal achievement 28
Spouse beginning or ceasing to
work outside the home 26
Beginning or ceasing formal schooling 26
Major change in living conditions 25
Revision of personal habits
(dress, manners, associations, etc.) 24
Trouble with boss 23
Major change in working hours or conditions 20
Change in residence 20
Change to a new school 20
Major change in usual type and/or
amount of recreation 19
Major change in church activities
(a lot more or less than usual) 19
Major change in social activities
(clubs, dancing, movies, visiting) 18
Taking out a mortgage or loan for a lesser
purchase (e.g., for a car, TV, freezer, etc.) 17
Major change in sleeping habits 16
Major change in the number of
family get-togethers 15
Major change in eating habits 15
Vacation 13
Christmas season 12
Minor violations of the law
(e.g., traffic tickets, etc. ) 11
TOTAL _____
Scoring for the Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale According to the sample taken by the scientists that tabulated and created this scale, people who were in the sample group in this study who had scores of:
-
Less than 150 had approximately a 30% change of developing a stress-related illness
-
150 - 299 had approximately a 50% change of a stress-related illness
-
Over 300 had approximately a 80% chance of a stress-related illness
Again, you should not take this as a prediction of your chances of getting ill. First, the study percentages only represent what occured in that particular population. Second, it's not how much stress you have, it's how well you handle it!
Let your test results only serve to indicate to you how much stress you might be under. Then, search the main Web site and this forum for articles and ideas - or add your own here in this thread - on how to manage your stress well!
Mark Farmer is the author of several books on life
success, including 'Goal Setting Success'. He is the founder of
http://www.TotalLifeSuccess.com.
Subscribe to his powerful, life-changing newsletter with original,
cutting-edge "how-to succeed" tips at subscribe@totallifesuccess.com.
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