The Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale is designed to determine what burden we are facing at a given moment in our lives and how it affects our he alth (both physical and mental). More and more studies show a correlation between chronic stress and an increased risk of disease. The more stressors we have in life, the easier it is to get sick. Thanks to the Holmes and Rahe stress scale, we can calculate our stress level and react quickly enough to prevent the development of certain diseases.

Although stress factors are an individual matter, there are also universal stressors that negatively affect our nervous system and the endocrine system. If you want to find out which of them are the strongest contributors to the deterioration of your he alth, complete thestress scale questionnairecreated byHolmes and Rahe .

What is the Holmes and Rahe stress scale?

Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe are two psychiatrists who in 1967 decided to conduct research on stress and its connection with human he alth. To this end, they asked over 5,000 people (he althy and sick) to fill in a special questionnaire.

This questionnaire lists 43 random events such as: divorce, death of a loved one (usually a very stressful factor in human life), to which the researchers assigned points.

The respondents were to mark the stressors they experienced during the last year of life and sum up the points that were assigned to individual stressors.

As it turned out, the higher the result, i.e. the more stressful factors appeared in a given person's life, the more it increased the risk of developing a disease.

For example, the people who came to the ER who completed the questionnaire usually had more stressful experiences than the he althy people who accompanied them.

In this way, it has been statistically proven that stress is strongly associated with the weakening of immunity and adversely affects human he alth.

The Holmes and Rahe stress scale - what was it for?

The scale for measuring stressful factors in our life was created to find out what burden we have to face at a given moment and how it canaffect our he alth. Thanks to this awareness, we can react faster in a situation that is unfavorable for us and ask for help from, for example, a psychologist who will help us relieve the growing tension, teach us to release accumulated emotions.

Because it's not the emotion itself that causes the disease, but the inability to cope with it, hide it or choke it. When we learn to release anger in a he althy way, to show sadness, then the severity of the situation we experience will lessen.

The Holmes and Rahe stress scale was also created to take care of yourself in terms of physical he alth.

When we know how much a stressful factor, for example, a change of place of residence can be for us, we can take better care of our he alth, e.g. start supplementing with magnesium and B vitamins, which take care of our nervous system. In order to reduce stress, we can try to sleep longer and give ourselves more rest.

Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale - calculate your stress level

If you want to calculate how much stress you are currently facing, please complete the questionnaire below and add up your points. Count points for each event you have experienced in the last year.

If this event happened to you twice, you get additional points. For example: a friend's death is 37 points. If two of your friends died within a year, this event counts as 74 points.

  1. Death of your spouse - 100 points
  2. Divorce - 73
  3. Separation or parting - 65
  4. Jail stay - 63
  5. Death of a close family member - 63
  6. Severe illness or accident with bodily injury - 53
  7. Wedding - 50
  8. Dismissal / unemployment - 50
  9. Reconciliation with spouse - 45
  10. Retirement - 45
  11. Significant change in a family member's he alth or behavior - 44
  12. Pregnancy - 40
  13. Sexual problems - 39
  14. The arrival of a new family member - 39
  15. Major job change or company reorganization - 39
  16. Change in financial status - 38
  17. Death of a friend - 37
  18. Job change - 36
  19. Conflicts in the family - 35
  20. High credit or heavy burden on mortgage - 31
  21. Mortgage problems / credit refusal - 30
  22. Changing the degree of responsibility in working life - 29
  23. The children leave the family home - 29
  24. Quarrels and clashes with spouse's relatives - 29
  25. Increasing the effort to complete a task - 28
  26. Spouse's beginning or end of work - 26
  27. Startor graduation - 26
  28. Changes to the standard, standard of living - 25
  29. Changes in personal habits and habits - 24
  30. Clashes with the boss - 23
  31. Changes in working conditions or the immediate environment - 20
  32. Change of residence - 20
  33. Change of school - 20
  34. Significant change in leisure activities - 19
  35. Changes in religious practices - 19
  36. Significant change in social habits - 18
  37. Small loan - 17
  38. Significant change in sleep habits - 16
  39. Significant change in contacts with family - 15
  40. Changes in eating habits - 15
  41. Leave - 13
  42. Holidays with family - 12
  43. Minor violation of law - 11

Stress scale of Holmes and Rahe and the risk of falling ill

According to the research of Holmes and Rahe, there is a very large correlation between the experienced stress factors and the risk of falling ill. Therefore, the higher the result was obtained by summing up the points from the questionnaire, the greater the probability of developing some diseases.

According to Holmes and Rahe:

  • A score between 150 and 199 means a 37% chance of getting sick within the next 2 years.
  • A score between 200 and 299 gives you a 51% chance of getting sick within 2 consecutive years.
  • A score above 300 points means a 79% chance of getting sick in the next 2 years.

But don't be fixated on the result itself. Its purpose is not to scare us, but to encourage us to take care of ourselves and protect our body from the negative effects of stress.

Since the disease can develop within two years, we have two years to repair our body and psyche enough to prevent it from falling ill.

  • Stress: how to overcome it? Causes, symptoms and effects of stress
  • Unwanted symptoms of long-term stress

Category:

Psychology