What causes stress – A list of life’s most stressful events.

To counteract the effects of stress, we have to recognize the signs. These may include insomnia, panic attacks, weight loss, trembling, unfounded anxieties and phobias, irritable bowel syndrome, palpitations, irritability, hyperventilation, muscular tension, headaches, addiction problems, high blood pressure, and a rapid pulse. Some of these symptoms are obviously more serious than others and will, to a certain degree, indicate your ability to channel and process stress.

Once we have recognized the signs and realized that we too are suffering from the badly processed response to stress, we need to identify the causes of stress in our lives. Most stress-management con­sultants work with a general list of around 43 prin­cipal life events that are known to cause some degree of stress. These range from the death of a spouse (rated at 100), to a change in one’s relation­ship with a partner (rated at 36), down to a minor breaking of the law (rated at 15). If you clock up a score of more than 150 in a year, the chances are that you’ll experience some sort of problem with your health. A score of anything over 300 in one year will almost certainly lead to major health problems unless action is taken.

This list can help you reduce stress in your life. Once you know which life events are on the list and how high each item normally scores, you can try to plan in advance how many of the major changes you’ll make in one year. Of course, some events are beyond anybody’s control—but at least you can keep the stressful occasions that are within your control to a minimum. The rating of stress levels on this list may seem arbitrary or subjective, but that is because it takes into account the long-term effects of various events. For example to some people the stress of Christmas may seem higher than its rating here. But while Christmas is over relatively quickly, the death of a close family
member or a prison sentence may take years to adjust to, grieve over, or come to terms with.

Death of a child or spouse 100
Divorce 75
Marital separation 65
Prison sentence 65
Death of someone close in the family 65
Serious injury or illness 55
Getting married 50
Redundancy or dismissal 48
Marital reconciliation 45
Retirement 44
Illness affecting close family member 44
Pregnancy 40
Sexual difficulties 40
New baby 39
Change in business 38
Change in financial affairs 38
Death of close friend 38
Change in work 37
Change in relationship with partner 36
Rate rise or renegotiating mortgage 31
Loss of mortgage 30
New boss 28
Children leaving home 27
Problems with in-laws 26
Winning award 26
Partner changing type of work 25
Beginning or stopping study course 23
Change in living conditions 23
Change in personal habits 22
Argument with boss 21
Change in working conditions 20
Moving house 20
Children changing schools 19
Change in social activities 18
Change in religious activities 18
Taking out loan 17
Altered sleeping habits 17
Change in family location 16
Dieting 15
Vacations 15
Christmas 15
Minor law-breaking 15