Unraveling the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale

I've got a bit of a throwback topic for you today.

You might be wondering how an age-old scale (no, not that pesky bathroom one) could possibly relate to your modern-day health issues.

Before we had avocado toasts and kombucha on every corner, two pioneering researchers, Holmes and Rahe, were making waves in the medical world when they came up with The Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale.

In the mid-20th century, Drs. Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe embarked on a journey to investigate the relationship between significant life events and the likelihood of illness.

After surveying over 5,000 medical patients, asking about life events they'd faced recently, they established a ground-breaking correlation: stress, whether resulting from positive or negative events, had a tangible link to health outcomes.

How Does It Work?

The scale lists 43 life events, from the minor (like a minor law violation - who hasn’t had a parking ticket?) to the major (like the death of a spouse).

Each event is allocated a "Life Change Unit" (LCU) value, which quantifies the potential stress it could cause.

Say you’ve recently moved homes (20 points), changed your job role (29 points), and perhaps, lost a close family member (63 points).

Your cumulative score? 112 points. The results are generally interpreted as follows:

• Below 150 LCUs: A relatively low amount of life change and low susceptibility to stress-induced health breakdowns.

• 150 to 299 LCUs: A 50% chance of a major health breakdown in the next 2 years.

• 300 LCUs and above An 80% chance of developing a major health breakdown in the next 2 years.

Stress and Your Body: The Unwanted Duo

Stress isn’t just that thing millennials complain about. Prolonged stress doesn't merely translate to feeling 'burnt out' or 'overwhelmed'.

From a functional health perspective, stress impacts the gut microbiome, interferes with hormone balances, and can ignite or aggravate autoimmune responses.

Stress has been directly linked to conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), exacerbation of autoimmune disorders, and even cardiovascular diseases.

While we can't always control life's events, being aware of the cumulative stress they induce can be a game-changer.

By understanding where we stand on the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale, we can make informed decisions about our lifestyles, ensuring that we're not inadvertently fueling the fire of chronic health issues.

Interested in Discovering Your Stress Score?

If you're intrigued by the Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale and want to identify where you stand, reply to this email and we'll send you a copy of the scale.

Assessing your stressors is an important step in your health journey and can sometimes be the missing piece of the puzzle.

Chat soon!
Marko