Photo credit: http://www.setster.com/blog/stressed-out-get-control/
Stress is bad for us; decades of research have documented that. It contributes to many mental and physical health problems. But - a growing field of research explores another detrimental aspect of stress - it's contagious.
In their weekly conversation, WHYY's behavioral health reporter Maiken Scott and psychologist Dan Gottlieb discussed what scientists are learning about this.
MS: Dan - we often say things like - this person is "stressing me out" how is that possible?
DG: In very basic terms, we are hard-wired to be social animals through so-called mirror neurons - they were first discovered in the 1990s. They simulate the actions and emotions of others. It's designed to help us learn, understand, empathize. It is usually a good thing. But - when somebody is very stressed, these mirror neurons in our brains imitate their stress response.
MS: So - this could be happening at home, at work - anywhere?
- yes, research has found "crossover" stress that travels from co-worker to co-worker, that stress travels from spouse to spouse, and then to children. And a lot of times, we are not even aware that this is happening in our brains.
Researchers have also shown that stress travels from mothers to children - they pick up on their mother's stress levels and have physiological responses to their mom's stress reaction, such as increased heart rate etc.
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