Living A Stress-Free Life May Not Be Recommendable, Says New Study

Mental Health News: According to the findings of a new study, Stress-free life has its own pros and cons in our daily life.

Stress has become a common phenomenon in today’s modern life, associated with various aspects of human life. However, a new study states that while some people report feeling no stress at all, a stress-free life also has its own downside.

The study claims that individuals who do not experience any stressors tend to experience better day-to-day wellbeing with fewer chronic health crises. However, they may also experience a lower cognitive function. According to David M. Almeida, professor of human development and family studies at Penn State believes that ‘small, daily stressors’ are a probable benefit to the brain, despite it being inconvenient. It enables individuals to learn to solve problems.

For this research, data was collected from 2,711 participants. Before the study had formerly begun, the participants completed a short cognition test. For 8 consecutive nights, the participants were questioned about their mood, health conditions that they may have, their physical symptoms, and what they did during that day. The participants had also reported a number of stressors like arguments with friends and family or a problem at work. Additionally, they had also shared some positive experiences, such as sharing a laugh with someone at home or work.

According to the results, while there were benefits for those with no stressors (nearly 10% of the participants), they had also exhibited poor performance on their cognition test. Additionally, they hardly gave or received any emotional support while experiencing less positive things occurring around them. Almeida concludes by saying that it is not necessary to avoid small stressors as it changes how we respond to stress.

For More Information, You May Refer To:

Susan T. Charles et al, The mixed benefits of a stressor-free life., Emotion (2021). DOI: 10.1037/emo0000958