Stanford University psychology professor Kelly McGonigal shares her tips on how stress can make you stronger and friendlier.
There is one very underestimated aspect of the stress response: Stress makes people social. After all, thanks to him, the hormone oxytocin (the hormone of hugs) is released. It makes you want physical contact with your friends. He also makes you help and support others.
So when you reach out to people to ask for support or help someone else, you release more of this hormone. Thanks to this, the stress response becomes healthy and you experience it more easily.
A recent study has confirmed that caring makes people more resilient to stress. After all, people who spend time caring for others don’t die of stress at all.
How you deal with stress is how it affects you. If you view stress as something beneficial, then you are strengthening the biology of courage.