Life Change Stress Test

This Life Change Stress Test is an interactive version of the Holmes-Rahe Stress Inventory.

In the late 1960s, two psychiatrists, Richard Rahe and Thomas Holmes, set out to determine how stressful life changes affected health via the stress response. They did this by examining more than 5,000 patient records to see if they could correlate stressful life events with illness. The result was the Social Readjustment Rating Scale, also known as the Holmes-Rahe Stress Inventory. It measures the amount of change in one’s life that may affect stress levels. It assigns a weighted numerical value to each stressful event based on its statistical effects on human health. Rahe performed follow-up research that backed up earlier findings.

The inventory lists both positive and negative changes that can cause stress.

Stress can lead to numerous physiological changes. When you experience stress, your body releases many chemicals and hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline, which prepare you for fight or flight. This type of response is a natural part of human physiology. It occurs to allow you to react to a perceived physical threat, according to the Mayo Clinic. This causes a number of changes including elevated heart rate and respiration, suppression of the digestive system, increased blood flow, and immunosuppression.

Throughout your life, you’re likely to experience both change and stress many times. You can learn to have control over how you react to change and how you allow it to impact you. You can also learn to effectively deal with the associated stress. – lovetoknowhealth.com

We hope you enjoy and learn from the Life Change Stress Test.

The Life Change Stress Test starts here:

For each event listed below, click on the number of times it has occurred in the last twelve months. (You can also include occurrences expected in the near future.) Then click on the SUBMIT button to get your results.

1. 
Death of Spouse

2. 
Divorce

3. 
Marital Separation

4. 
Jail Time

5. 
Death of a close family member

6. 
Personal injury or illness

7. 
Marriage

8. 
Fired from job

9. 
Marital Reconciliation

10. 
Retirement

11. 
Change in health of family member

12. 
Pregnancy

13. 
Sex difficulties

14. 
Gain a new family member

15. 
Business readjustment

16. 
Change in financial state

17. 
Death of a close friend

18. 
Change to different line of work

19. 
Change in number of arguments with spouse

20. 
Mortgage or debt over $20,000

21. 
Foreclosure or bankruptcy

22. 
Change in work responsibilities

23. 
Child leaving home

24. 
Trouble with in-laws

25. 
Outstanding personal achievement

26. 
Spouse starts or stops working

27. 
Begin or end school

28. 
Change in living conditions

29. 
Changes in personal habits

30. 
Trouble with boss

31. 
Change in work hours or conditions

32. 
Change of residence

33. 
Change of schools

34. 

35. 
Change of recreations

36. 
Change in church activities

37. 
Change in social activities

38. 
Mortgage or debt less than $20,000

39. 
Change in sleeping habits

40. 
Change in number of family get-togethers

41. 
Change in eating habits

42. 
Vacation

43. 
Christmas season

44. 
Minor law violation

Related Article: Coping with Change

* Please leave a comment below. You may comment anonymously or you may use your first name. We may post or quote your comment on the website. We will never post or share your last name, email address or any other personal identifying information.

How useful was this post?

Click on a heart to rate it!

Please share, follow and like us:

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Social Share Buttons and Icons powered by Ultimatelysocial
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Instagram
RSS