Well appreciated. Thank you so much sister for fowarding this to us. Halima -----Original Message----- From: Ylva Hernlund [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Friday, February 22, 2002 10:44 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: how women cope w/stress (fwd) For all the sisters on the list... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2002 08:32:57 -0800 (PST) > > > >An interesting article by Jean Houston > > > >Women respond to stress differently than men do. > Fortunately, > we also have > >better way to fight it: each other. Friendships > between women > are special. > >They shape who we are and who we are yet to be. > They soothe our > tumultuous > >inner world, fill the emotional gaps in our > marriage, and help > us remember > >who we really are. But they may do even more. > Scientists now > suspect that > >hanging out with our friends can actually > counteract the kind > of > >stomach-quivering stress most of us experience on > a daily > basis. > > > >A landmark UCLA study suggests that women respond > to stress > with a cascade > >of brain chemicals that cause us to make and > maintain > friendships with > >other women. It's a stunning finding that has > turned five > decades of > >stress research - most of it on men - upside down. > > > >"Until this study was published, scientists > generally believed > that when > >people experience stress, they trigger a hormonal > cascade that > revs the > >body to either stand and fight or flee as fast as > possible," > explains > >Laura Cousino Klein, PhD, now an assistant > professor of > biobehavioral > >health at Pennsylvania State University in State > College and > one of the > >study's authors. "It's an ancient survival > mechanism left over > from the > >time we were chased across the planet by > saber-toothed tigers. > Now the > >researchers suspect that women have a larger > behavioral > repertoire than > >just "fight or > >flight." In fact, says Dr. Klein, it seems that > when the > hormone oxytocin > >is released as part of the stress response in a > woman, it > buffers the > >fight or flight response and encourages her to > tend children > and gather > >with other women instead. When she actually > engages in this > tending or > >befriending, studies suggest that more oxytocin is > released, > which further > >counters stress and produces a calming effect. > This calming > response does > >not occur in men, says Dr. Klein, because > testosterone - which > men produce > >in high levels when they're under stress-seems to > reduce the > effects of > >oxytocin. Estrogen, she adds, seems to enhance it. > > > >The discovery that women respond to stress > differently than men > was made > >in a classic "aha!" moment shared by two women > scientists who > were talking > >one day in a lab at UCLA. "There was this joke > that when the > women who > >work in the lab were stressed, they came in, > cleaned the lab, > had coffee, > >and bonded," says Dr. Kein. "When the men were > stressed, they > holed up > >somewhere on their own. "I commented one day to a > fellow > researcher, > >Shelley Taylor that nearly 90% of the stress > research is on > males. I > >showed her the data from my lab, and the two of us > knew > instantly that we > >were onto something." > > > >The women cleared their schedules and started > meeting with one > scientist > >after another from various research specialties. > Very quickly, > Drs. Klein > >and Taylor discovered that by not including women > in stress > research, > >scientists had made a huge mistake: The fact that > women respond > to stress > >differently than men has significant implications > for our > health. > > > >It may take some time for new studies to reveal > all the ways > that oxytocin > >encourages us to care for children and hang out > with other > women, but the > >"tend and befriend" notion developed by Drs. Klein > and Taylor > may explain > >why women consistently outlive men. Study after > study has found > that > >social ties reduce our risk of disease by lowering > blood > pressure, heart > >rate, and cholesterol. "There's no doubt," says > Dr.Klein, "that > friends > >are helping us live longer." > > > >In one study, for example, researchers found that > people who > had no > >friends increased their risk of death over a > 6-month period. In > another > >study, those who had the most friends over a > 9-year period cut > their risk > >of death by more than 60%. Friends are also > helping us live > better. The > >famed Nurses' Health Study from Harvard Medical > School found > that the more > >friends women had, the less likely they were to > develop > physical > >impairments as they aged, and the more likely they > were to be > leading a > >joyful life. In fact, the results were so > significant, the > researchers > >concluded, that not having close friend or > confidantes was as > detrimental > >to your health as smoking or carrying extra > weight! And that's > not all: > >When the researchers looked at how well the women > functioned > after the > >death of their spouse, they found that even in the > face of this > biggest > >stressor of all, those women who had a close > friend and > confidante were > >more likely to survive the experience without any > new physi! > cal > >impairment or permanent loss of vitality. Those > without friends > were not > >always so fortunate. > > > >Yet if friends counter the stress that seems to > swallow up so > much of our > >life these days, if they keep us healthy and even > add years to > our life, > >why is it so hard to find time to be with them? > That's a > question that > >also troubles researcher Ruthellen Josselson, PhD, > coauthor of > Best > >Friends: The Pleasures and Perils of Girls' and > Women's > Friendships (Three > >Rivers Press,1998). "Every time we get overly busy > with work > and family, > >the first thing we do is let go of friendships > with other > women," explains > >Dr. Josselson. "We push them right to the back > burner. That's > really a > >mistake, because women are such a source of > strength to each > other. We > >nurture one another. And we need to have > unpressured space in > which we can > >do the special kind of talk that women do when > they're with > other women. > >It's a very healing experience." __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Sports - Coverage of the 2002 Olympic Games http://sports.yahoo.com <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>> To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>> <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>> To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>