How stress is killing us (and how you can stop it). | Thijs Launspach | TEDxUniversiteitVanAmsterdam

Summary

This presentation delves into the parallels between fish, blissfully unaware of their aquatic environment, and humans, often oblivious to the stressors in their lives. It underscores the societal acceptance of a hectic, stress-laden lifestyle, leading to burnout. The speaker, a psychologist, uses data to highlight the prevalence of burnout, particularly among younger demographics, and its correlation with detrimental health effects. The talk advocates for self-care, mindfulness, and stress management as crucial skills to combat the adverse impacts of stress, empowering individuals to take control over their well-being.

Takeaways

• 🐟 Fish, like humans, often fail to recognize the most obvious aspects of their environment, suggesting a parallel where humans might overlook significant elements in their lives.
• 🏃‍♂️ The societal belief that a good life equates to a busy life is challenged, as the speaker points out the unrecognized costs of constant busyness and stress.
• 📈 The speaker conducts a live experiment to demonstrate the prevalence of burnout and stress-related impacts on sleep, diet, exercise, and leisure time among the audience.
• 📊 Data from the Netherlands' Central Bureau of Statistics in 2016 shows a significant percentage of the population experiencing burnout, with a notable spike among those aged 25 to 35.
• 🔍 The discussion highlights how stress can lead to serious health issues, including a weakened immune system, obesity, certain types of cancer, and even premature death.
• 💼 Work is identified as a primary source of stress, with increasing job complexity, overtime, and blurred boundaries between work and personal time contributing to the problem.
• 📱 Modern life's frantic pace, fueled by FOMO and constant connectivity, leaves little room for relaxation and increases stress levels.
• 🧠 The psychological impact of high self-expectations, such as the need for constant success and happiness, adds to the stress burden individuals carry.
• 🔬 Stress is an involuntary response to stressors, and the body's reaction prepares it for 'fight or flight,' a response that's outdated in modern contexts but still deeply ingrained.
• 🛑 Burnout is described as a state where the stress response system is damaged, making normally non-stressful situations feel overwhelming and leading to a prolonged recovery period.
• 🌟 The speaker emphasizes the importance of self-care, proper sleep, diet, exercise, and mindfulness practices as tools to manage stress effectively.

Q & A

What is the main comparison made between fish and humans in the script?

The main comparison is that just as fish are not aware that they are in water, humans often fail to notice important aspects of their lives.

What are the two significant things in human life that are often overlooked according to the speaker?

The two things are the belief that a good life is a busy life and the acceptance of even dangerous levels of stress as normal.

How does the speaker illustrate the prevalence of stress and burnout?

The speaker uses a live experiment with the audience, asking them to raise their hands if they have experienced or know someone who has experienced burnout or if stress has negatively impacted their sleep, relationships, diet, exercise, or spare time.

What statistics does the speaker provide about burnout in the Netherlands?

The speaker refers to statistics from the Central Bureau of Statistics in the Netherlands showing that burnout symptoms are around 15% among various age groups, with a significant increase in the 25 to 35 years old group.

What are some of the health issues associated with stress as mentioned in the script?

Health issues associated with stress include a weaker immune system, obesity, diet-related problems, some forms of cancer, and even premature death.

Why does the speaker say our jobs are a significant source of stress?

Jobs are a significant source of stress because they are becoming more complicated, require more overtime, involve extensive emailing, and blur the lines between work and personal time.

What is FOMO and how does it contribute to a frantic pace of life?

FOMO stands for 'Fear Of Missing Out', and it contributes to a frantic pace of life by making people try to pack more activities into their day, leading to less opportunity for relaxation.

How does the speaker describe the physiological response to stress?

The speaker describes the physiological response to stress as an involuntary physical and psychological reaction to a stressor, involving the release of hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, leading to increased heart rate, tense muscles, and other 'fight or flight' responses.

What is burnout and how does it affect a person's perception of stress?

Burnout is described as a state where the stress response system gets damaged, making normally non-stressful situations seem very stressful.

What practical advice does the speaker give for managing stress?

The speaker advises taking care of one's physical health by getting enough sleep, maintaining a balanced diet, exercising regularly, being mindful of alcohol and caffeine intake, and scheduling downtime. Additionally, practices like mindfulness and yoga can help train the brain to be more focused and tolerant of stress.

Outlines

00:00

🐟 The Unnoticed Aspects of Life: A Comparison Between Fish and Humans

The speaker begins by drawing a parallel between fish and humans, highlighting how both can be oblivious to certain important aspects of their lives. Fish, despite being acutely aware of their surroundings, do not realize they are in water. Similarly, humans often fail to notice significant elements in their lives. The speaker points out two such elements: the belief that a good life equates to a busy life and the acceptance of high levels of stress as normal. The talk then shifts to the increasing pace of life and the psychological impact of stress, including burnout. An interactive experiment is conducted with the audience to gauge their personal experiences with stress and its effects on various aspects of life, such as sleep, diet, exercise, and leisure time. The speaker presents statistics on burnout from the Netherlands, emphasizing the prevalence across different age groups and the significant increase in burnout among individuals aged 25 to 35. The talk concludes with a discussion on the serious health implications of stress, including weaker immune systems, obesity, certain types of cancer, and even premature death.

05:03

📈 The Causes and Consequences of Modern-Day Stress

The speaker delves into the reasons behind the frantic pace of modern life, identifying multiple factors contributing to stress. Work-related stress is highlighted as a significant source, with jobs becoming more complex, longer hours, and increased use of electronic communication blurring the lines between work and personal time. Additionally, the fear of missing out (FOMO) and the pressure to maintain an attractive, successful, and happy image contribute to the constant feeling of being busy. The speaker explains the physiological response to stress, describing how the body's fight-or-flight mechanism is triggered by stressors. This response, once a survival mechanism for physical threats, is now activated by modern stressors like deadlines and social pressures. The speaker points out that the prolonged exposure to stress can lead to burnout, a state where even minor stressors feel overwhelming, and emphasizes the importance of managing stress to prevent burnout.

10:05

🧘‍♀️ Coping with Stress: Self-Care and Mindfulness Techniques

The speaker offers practical advice on managing stress, starting with the importance of self-care. Recommendations include getting adequate sleep, maintaining a healthy diet, regular exercise, and moderating caffeine intake. The speaker also suggests scheduling downtime to relax and recharge. Breathing exercises are introduced as a method to reduce stress in the moment, and the audience is guided through a brief mindfulness exercise to illustrate its calming effects. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of developing stress management skills, such as mindfulness and meditation, to improve focus and tolerance to stress. The talk ends with a call to action, urging the audience to take control of their stress levels to prevent burnout and improve their overall well-being.

Keywords

💡Stress

Stress is defined as an involuntary physical and psychological response to a stressor, which can be anything from health concerns to work-related pressures. In the context of the video, stress is highlighted as a pervasive issue in modern life, contributing to a variety of health problems and the phenomenon of burnout. The video emphasizes the importance of recognizing and managing stress to prevent these negative outcomes.

💡Burnout

Burnout refers to a state of chronic physical and emotional exhaustion, often accompanied by feelings of cynicism and reduced effectiveness at work. The video discusses burnout as a significant issue, particularly among certain age groups, and suggests that it is a result of prolonged exposure to high levels of stress. The script uses data from the Netherlands to illustrate the prevalence of burnout symptoms.

💡Fight-or-Flight Response

The fight-or-flight response is an evolutionary stress response mechanism that prepares the body for a quick physical reaction to a perceived threat. In the video, this concept is used to explain how the body's reaction to stress has evolved over time, but still operates in a way that can be detrimental in modern, non-life-threatening situations.

💡Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a mental practice involving awareness and attention to the present moment without judgment. The video suggests that mindfulness, along with other activities like yoga and meditation, can help train the brain to focus more and be more tolerant of stress. It is presented as a tool for managing the stress response and improving overall well-being.

💡Adrenaline and Cortisol

Adrenaline and cortisol are hormones that are released in response to stress, triggering the fight-or-flight response. The video explains that these hormones cause physical changes such as increased heart rate and muscle tension, preparing the body for action. However, the continuous release of these hormones due to chronic stress can lead to health issues.

💡FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

FOMO is a term that describes the anxiety that an individual might experience from the perception that others are having rewarding experiences from which they are absent. In the video, FOMO is mentioned as a contributor to a hectic lifestyle, where people feel the need to constantly engage in activities to avoid missing out, leading to increased stress.

💡Work-Related Stress

Work-related stress encompasses the physical and emotional responses that occur when job demands exceed the individual's ability to cope. The video discusses how jobs are becoming more complicated, with increased overtime and blurred boundaries between work and personal time, contributing to overall stress levels.

💡Self-Care

Self-care refers to the actions people take for maintaining their own health and well-being, such as getting enough sleep, eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, and managing stress. The video emphasizes the importance of self-care in managing stress, suggesting that taking care of one's physical health can have a positive impact on mental health and stress tolerance.

💡Caffeine

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant that can temporarily ward off drowsiness and restore alertness. The video warns against excessive caffeine intake, as it can disrupt hormone balance and contribute to stress levels. It is suggested that moderation in caffeine consumption is important for stress management.

💡Expectations

Expectations refer to the beliefs about what will or should happen in a particular situation. In the video, high expectations about oneself, such as needing to be attractive, fit, healthy, financially successful, and happy all the time, are identified as a source of stress. The video suggests that managing one's expectations can be a key aspect of stress management.

Highlights

Fish are remarkably aware of their surroundings but are oblivious to the water they live in, drawing a parallel to how humans often fail to notice important aspects of their own lives.

The speaker suggests that humans are often unaware of the impact of constant busyness and stress in their lives.

A good life being equated with a busy life is a common misconception that contributes to increased stress levels.

Dangerous levels of stress are becoming normalized, even though they can have severe health implications.

The audience is engaged in an experiment to assess the prevalence of burnout and stress-related impacts on various aspects of life.

Statistics from the Netherlands show a significant percentage of the population experiencing burnout symptoms, with a notable increase in the 25 to 35 age group.

Stress is linked to a variety of health issues, including weaker immune systems, obesity, certain cancers, and even premature death.

The frantic pace of life is attributed to multiple factors, including job complexity, overtime work, and the constant accessibility of work through technology.

Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) contributes to a packed daily schedule, leaving little room for relaxation and increasing stress.

Psychological factors, such as high self-expectations, also play a role in the constant feeling of being busy and stressed.

Stress is an involuntary response to stressors, which can range from health concerns to work-related pressures.

The body's fight-or-flight response to stress is a physiological reaction that has evolved from our ancestors' need to survive in the wild.

Modern stressors are less physical and more psychological, but the body's reaction remains the same, leading to prolonged stress exposure.

Burnout is described as a state where the stress response system is damaged, making normally non-stressful situations seem very stressful.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of self-care, including sleep, diet, exercise, and mindfulness, as a means to manage stress effectively.

Mindfulness exercises are introduced as a way to train the brain to focus and increase stress tolerance.

The choice to manage stress is presented as a critical decision that can significantly impact one's health and well-being.

Transcripts

fish are remarkable creatures they're

acutely aware of their surroundings they

can smell predators for miles away and

they know the availability of food or

potential mates and yet there's one

thing fish are not aware of what's that

they're in water right so I think there

are certain similarities between fish

and us people I think human beings also

don't notice some of the important

things and until our lives and I want to

talk to you about two of those things

one is a good life is a busy life and

the second is levels of stress even

dangerous levels of stress are

acceptable and they are normal so our

lives are getting more busy than ever

and part of this we like right we feel

productive we sort of like the frantic

pace as well there's never a dull moment

and we like that about it but there are

as a psychologist I can see a different

side to the same coin

which is stress and Eve even unhealthy

amounts of stress that are becoming

normal for us today so let's do a little

experiment can I have some house lights

on as well so let me see you okay let me

ask you some questions yes there you are

so the first one is raise your hand if

this applies to you are you affected by

burnouts either personally or by someone

else close to you who among you that's a

fair amount okay so next question the

stress have a negative impact on the one

of the following things right sleep rule

among you Wow let's loss okay diet okay

amount of exercise that you have okay

and the amount of spare time that you're

having your life

okay that's most of you basically so the

next one the million-dollar question who

among you would think that they would be

a happier person if they'd only be less

busy or less stressed in life

okay wow that's a lot of you so let's

let us look at another sort of point in

this one and let me walk you through

these figures I think you might know

them these are burnout symptoms in the

Netherlands like from the Central Bureau

of Statistics in 2016 they're split by

age groups and by sex as well so you

have the light blue those are the males

and dark blue are the females and I

apologize it there are in Dutch but

there you can see the sir I'm sorry the

age groups is 15 to 25 25 to 35 etc

right so what you see here and I can try

to yes okay so one of the first thing to

notice is that apart from pensioners and

well high school students and sort of

college students as well the amount of

burn out is about 15%

this is lifetime prevalence and another

things to notice is that 25 to 35 years

old there's significantly more burnout

so this is a problem and this is a

problem if you think that most people

don't really even get to the stage of

burnout but are stressed in their lives

and years for years and years and years

right so a couple of the different

things that are associated with stress

are a weaker immune system obesity and

other diet related problems even some

forms of cancer some types of cancer and

even in some studies premature death so

serious serious stuff so there are a

couple of things well for me the

question is why right I'm a psychologist

I like to investigate stuff so why are

we at this frantic pace well it turns

out it's not one thing it's multiple

things it's a lot of things so let's

start by our jobs it's one of the most

obvious places to look for a

work-related stress so our jobs are

getting more and more complicated we

work more overtime than ever we are we

spend an average of two plus hours

emailing every day

often on top of a regular workload and

the boundaries between our working hours

in our spare time are crumbling because

we can access our email and our stuff

from home right so that's our job then

our daily lives are getting more and

more frantic as well so we suffer from

FOMO which I'm sure you know FOMO right

fear of missing out which means that we

put all kinds of different activities

and we try to put it in a limited space

of our day which means that we live on a

frantic pace and that we sort of lacked

the opportunity to relax in between as

well well to add insult to injury as the

previous speaker talked about as well we

are addicted to these things which take

up every spare moment that we do have so

that's bad stuff and also between our

ears we get busier as well so there's a

psychological psychological elements at

play

for example the expectations that we

have about ourselves so we need need

ourselves to be attractive fit healthy

financially successful socially

successful and happy all of the time

every day right or else we feel like

losers so that's a bad thing so our

expectations are really playing us on us

as well so let's take a step back and

look at what stress really is because

we're talking about this for a little

bit so yeah stress by textbook

definition is an involuntary physical

and psychological response to a stressor

so a couple of things to notice here

it's something you don't choose to be

stressed you get just get stressed it's

something that happens in your body and

it's something that happens in your head

right and it's always always a response

to a certain stressor well what could be

stressors well these things so health

concerns

family conflicts doing a test Hawk

basically speaking in public is well

it's up there with the most stressful

things according to some people

demanding social lives work-related

stress stress or

and everything it's it entails right

it's deadlines difficult conversation

with clients or customers it's your boss

the pressure to achieve FOMO we've

talked about it never-ending to-do lists

who has those yeah me as well

right okay devices that continuously

want stuff from you even at times that

you are well would be unavailable right

so these things are potential stressors

so what happens when you encounter a

stressor

well this somewhere in your brain like a

couple of centimetres in here and your

hypothalamus one heart a couple of

hormones are excreted which initiates

chain reaction ending here at your

adrenal glands on top of your kidneys

excreting both adrenaline and cortisol

and under the influence of adrenaline

adrenaline and cortisol bodily changes

happen so like this your your heart rate

starts to rise your breath rate it goes

up your muscles tense your resources go

to your arms into your legs you get some

tunnel vision as well and some panicky

feelings so why would this happen does

anybody know surviving yes it sort of

prepares your body to do one of two

things right

fight or flight this is the this is the

famous fight-or-flight response so this

is how we still react when when

confronted with danger so this stems

from a different time right this stems

from the time when we were not hunting

for job opportunities but hunting for

our food and in which we are foraging

not for our lunch at the cafeteria but

foraging for berries and in the forests

right and the likelihood of encountering

a difficult or dangerous situation was

way higher than it is now so the

likelihood of encountering for example

one of these things was way higher so

this poses a problem because our

cultural evolution

so if went way faster than our physical

evolution so in different circumstances

now we are faced with the same system

only we don't meet that many Tigers

anymore right except in zoos but the

Tigers that we do meet are in these kind

of circumstances

so it's deadlines its job interviews its

conflicts with your bosses etc but our

body still reacts in the same way still

reacts in this way as if it's a tiger

so to add insult to injury here we

stress about different things about a

multiplicity of things and also we

stress for way longer and we know that

elongated exposure to stress is a really

bad thing and it leads to all sorts of

problems and it can eventually lead to

burnout so what's a burnout burnout is

basically one of the definitions is this

system getting damaged so that the

things that you would sort of normally

wouldn't find and find very stressful

you'd now think are very stressful so

that's a burnout it's a bad thing to

have it cost you a couple of months to

in recovery basically so that's the bad

news the good news is that you can do

stuff about this and I think that being

able to deal with stress effectively is

going to be one of the most important

skills that you have in the workplace

later on so what can you do well it

isn't that difficult baby basically so

one thing you can do is take care of

yourself which sounds like a huge cliche

but it is really true one thing you

should know about stress is that it

often presents as a cognitive problem so

yeah so you worry about something you

worry about you being in a certain

situation and what you should do but

actually your physique how you are

physically has a lot of influence and

fluence on that so if you feel fit you

deal with stress

better and you feel less stressed so

taking care of yourself entails the

following couple of things well get

enough sleep which but what is enough

sleep well about eight hours seven or

eight hours a night regularly so at a

regular going to bed and waking time so

the next thing is take care of your diet

which is eating a lot of veggies and

nutrients and not as much sugars well

have some regular exercise as well which

helps for your stress tolerance be

careful with alcohol drugs and those

type of things because they can sort of

influence your stress tolerance even in

the long run and be careful about your

intake of caffeine who among you have

have drunk more than say five cups of

coffee today

okay that's you're a healthy group so

that's a couple of you yeah okay

a caffeine really really messes with

your hormone balance and the last thing

is schedule some time in your week out

of any activity so that's time you

schedule to do nothing at all like veg

on the couch integrate stuff think about

stuff right so these are the basic

things another thing is this breathe so

this is a nice place in the presentation

because I can hear you all you okay so I

want to do an experiment again I want to

invite you to close your eyes and just

breathe regularly in through your nose

and out for your mouth

so what you can try to do is to elongate

your outward breath

well and as you're sitting there with

your eyes closed anyway I'd like to

invite you to pay attention to how you

are breathing at the moment to your in

words and outputs breath the way the

breath comes into your body and exits

maybe you can even detect a sort of a

rising and a falling sensation that goes

with that

so the next thing I want you to do is to

shift your attention to how you are

sitting at the moment so your bodily

sensations so it's your feet on the

floor

it's your back in the chair just notice

and if you get distracted by a thought

just bring back your attention that's

fine so the next thing I want you to do

is to notice that sounds that are going

on that you can notice now

and to shift your attention to the

thoughts that are occurring right now in

your head what kind of things are going

around in your head at the moment

okay and then at your own pace you can

get back to room okay right so I sort of

seduced to seduce you to do a small

mindfulness exercise we know that

certain types of activities like

mindfulness can train your brain to

focus more and to be less to be more

stress tolerance so it boosts your

stress tolerance mindfulness is one of

those things Yoga is another of those

things sometimes some types of

meditation or deep work types of

activities always to train your brain to

be more focused so again we're faced

with a choice just like with last

speaker I think the choice is real and

you have to make it and it's an

important choice and a choice is this

you either deal with stress or stress

deals with you stress is inevitable in

our daily lives but you can change the

way you relate to stress and that's

really a really important thing and you

can start by doing some of the things

I've talked about today and I think this

would be a really really good plan thank

you

[Applause]