Release date: May 1, 2002
Contact: Deb Hammacher, Associate Director, Media Relations,
at 404-727-0644 or dhammac@emory.edu

Students Learn to be Mindful of Their "Stressed-Out Brains"

Emory University students in the freshman-only seminar "The Stressed-out Brain" are putting what they've learned this semester to the test as they cope with the end-of-the-year flurry of papers and finals.

"The Stressed-out Brain" looks at the biology of stress so students can understand what's happening to them as they face the challenges of their first year of college. They have examined the difference between physical and psychological stress, what causes both, and the effects of short-term and long-term stress on memory, aging, overall health and its role in causing heart attacks.

"This class gives students an exposure to science in the context of a subject that has relevance to their lives," says instructor Susan Rouse, a senior lecturer in the biology department. "Students walk away from it understanding the scientific method as well as learning something about the body."

The main text for the course is "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers: An Updated Guide to Stress, Stress-related Diseases and Coping," by Robert Sapolsky. And the reason zebras (and most non-human animals) don't have the long-term effects of stress, is that stress for them is short-term and positive, providing the biological triggers to escape from danger or hunt for food.

"Humans have the unique ability among all animals to ponder the future and think about the past and the stressors in life, such as providing for a family or making deadlines, " Rouse says. "If you think hard enough about a lion chasing you, you will eventually trigger the biological stress response to it."

Rouse recommends to her students these strategies for coping with stress:

Increase your sense of control over a situation. Prepare in advance, such as studying on an ongoing basis instead of "cramming," getting enough rest and not procrastinating on important projects.

Find an outlet for your frustration and stress. Unfortunately in baboons, it means picking on a baboon lower on the social scale. For humans, meditation, reading and exercise can help.

Have a social support network. As demonstrated in non-human primates, baboons that socialize more with their "family" have lower stress responses.

If you are a type A personality — a tendency toward hostility due to impatience — psychotherapy can help modify that behavior, an option not available to the rest of the animal kingdom.

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