Are You Stressed? Take This Do-It-Yourself Stress Test

“AAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!….now I feel better…”

Can you imagine reading that on your friend’s Facebook status? Well, I had that privilege yesterday. After cracking up, I immediately thought back three weeks when I had a moment like that. I was trying to handle 783 things at once (ok…it may not have been that many, but it sure felt like it…).  I received a form in the mail from the Virginia Employment Commission asking me to fill out a nonessential form for their Human Resources Department. And I had an “AAACCCKKK!” moment.

Life is full of stress – both good and bad. If you’re feeling stressed out, that’s not good. And luckily, there is a free way to test your stress level using the Social Readjustment Rating Scale.

The Social Readjustment Rating Scale was developed by Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe (1967) to quantify the amount of stress that people experience in a variety of situations.  Their theory was that any life event – ranging from 100 life change units to 11 life change units – that required a person to adapt or change would create stress, whether the life event was pleasant or not.  Their tests showed that people with scores over 150 were more prone to physical and psychological disorders.  

Certain life events create positive and/or negative stress in your life.  And the thing is…you’re probably not aware of most of them. I was totally oblivious. But these same events can make your future fuzzy.  I have listed several common stressors below. To read over 40 stressors and download the do-it-yourself stress test, click here.

• Fired at work (47)
• Pregnancy (40)
• Change in financial state (38)
• Change to different line of work (36)
• Foreclosure on mortgage or loan (30)
• Outstanding personal achievement (28)

Taken from Hockenbury and Hockenbury’s, Discovering Psychology, 2nd ed., p.445