Stress Less and Get Ahead

Samuel Maddock

Leading Healthcare Professional and Health Technology Researcher

Editor - Well Professor?

This month we are putting ‘Stress Less’ under the magnifying glass and we have searched far and wide to find our three chosen stress less products for you, each brought to life by their creators to help you banish your stress. But before we get to the tech, lets take a look at why stress is such a big problem for so many of us.

Imagine not being affected by negative stress. How much more could you achieve, how much happier would you be? Research suggests the answer is a lot. According to Forth (2018) thirty nine percent of adults in the UK admit to being overwhelmed by stress in their day to day lives. That equates to over twenty million of us, weighed down and held back by stress as we carry an ever increasing baggage of life’s ‘what ifs’ where ever we go. 

Do you feel safe, or are you under threat? 

This is the essence of stress. True, stress takes many forms but essentially it all boils down to this question. And the answer largely dictates how we feel throughout life. Also true, the short term fight or flight response plays an essential role in our survival. But if this occurs over a prolonged period of time, threat can and does sadly become the norm for many people. The fact the modern world now largely lacks in the life or death consequences that our ancestors faced, is seemingly lost on the part of us that acts to preserve. If we sense a threat, whether about money, work or our health and it is not quickly resolved, we become anxious and stressed. 

Three reasons stress holds us back

Fear

Fear of failure in the present, fear of the past, or the future. In modern life, fear is everywhere. Research shows that over eight million of us in the UK will develop anxiety at some point in our lives, and usually before the age of 24. We need to become less anxious, and it needs to be a top priority.  

Lack of control

Autonomy is defined as the feeling that your life’s activities and habits are self-chosen. A feeling that you are in control and ultimately, you have the ability to choose how you live your life. Research shows that this is a key predictor of the effects of stress upon us and scarily, it can even determine our life expectancy. According to Donny et al 2006, stress that we cannot escape from is highly destructive, and that the same stressful situation but with a sense of control or escape from it, is significantly less destructive to our health. We clearly crave a sense of control in life in order to be happy and healthy.

Not living in the present

Finally, we have the seemingly simple requirement of living life in the present moment and experiencing what goes on around us as it happens. In reality, this ability to focus on the here and now is actually agonisingly difficult to maintain. We get so easily distracted and caught up in what has already happened, even though we know we cannot change this, or we worry about what might happen. The dreaded 'what if'.

The many benefits of focussed concentration are now moving into the mainstream and it is highly likely that you have heard of minfulness and meditation. The beneficial effects of both are becoming increasingly well known and the prospect of living a calmer, happier and even longer life are becoming a reality.

Technology to help you stress less

Each of this month's products come highly rated by our Well Professor team, and the evidence behind their claims has been scrutinised by Dr David Broom, our independent expert in the field. 

Sensate earns top marks this month for enabling its users to harness the transformative power of meditation in such a simple yet effective way. Doppel, taps into natures rhythm; the heartbeat, to put you firmly in control. And Touchpoints gets right to the heart of stress and anxiety, helping to calm your entire family as you face life's challenges together.

Whatever the reason for your worries, your stress less life starts here.

Samuel Maddock is a registered osteopath and health technology researcher. He has over a decade’s experience researching the latest innovations in health and wellness technology and consulting for health technology manufacturers to help improve product quality and effectiveness.