Many of us become stressed by our inability to control the future. For example, you may be ruminating night and day about how different things at work will be once your boss retires. Or maybe you're on edge over the fact that you've only recently gotten into a relationship and you don't know if it's going to work out. Maybe your spirits are low because you've been looking to buy a house for some time now to no avail. If there's one certainty in life, it's that life is uncertain. The only constant in our lives is change. Rather than sulking about it, we have to roll with the punches. It doesn't benefit you to fear worst-case scenarios that may never come to pass. You can plan for the worst, yes. Just don't convince yourself that the worst is actually going to happen because that will only make you into a nervous wreck. If we do find ourselves in that situation, we deal with it at that point. But agonizing over it in advance will on...

Gallup's annual survey of global emotions has unveiled that last year, Americans experienced anger, stress, and worry at levels eclipsing those observed over the past 10 years. The data is based on polling of over 150,000 people around the world, including 1,000 Americans. Americans' stress levels were significantly higher than the global average of 35 percent, leaving the U.S. tied for fourth (alongside Iran, Albania, and Sri Lanka) in Gallup's ranking of the most stressed populations around the globe. Greece came in first at 59 percent, while Tanzania and the Phillipines followed closely behind. As far as worry, the U.S. came in at 45 percent, slightly higher than the global average of 39 percent. (Mozambique has the world's most worried population with 63 percent.) And in terms of anger, although Anericans experienced the emotion at levels on par with the global average of 22 percent, this figure was still higher than in prior years. In fact, U.S. respo...

We all know of someone -- whether a friend, teacher, neighbor, or acquaintance -- who has cheated on their partner. Maybe they cheated on someone you're close to, or perhaps you've cheated on a significant other yourself and have vowed never to be unfaithful again. Unfortunately, I often find that in such cases of infidelity, the guilty party doesn't immediately take responsibility for what they did and give their partner the time and space they need to sort out their feelings. Instead, they become defensive (if not combative), trying to come up with reasons why they should be let off the hook. When the victim asks to be left alone, the cheater may heap apology after apology, refusing to take no for an answer. Nothing in the world could justify cheating on a partner. It is the most egregious form of betrayal one can carry out -- the ultimate breach of trust someone has placed in you. Not surprisingly, cheaters try to dream up every excuse in the book to justify th...

Whether you're stressing over an upcoming presentation you have to deliver at work, a blind date you have scheduled for the weekend, or a persistent leak in the kitchen ceiling, ask yourself one question: "Will this matter a year from now?" Sure, it's normal to experience some level of anxiety. If you're like me, you get antsy when you want to get something done right away so you don't have to worry about it any longer. However, you may hit a snag of some sort -- perhaps the presentation has to be rescheduled, the contractor can't see you for another month, etc. This may lead you to dwell on the matter until it's resolved. But life is too short to let one little thing derail your happiness. Instead of worrying incessantly about what may go wrong, why not focus on what can go right? There are certainly circumstances in life that warrant deep concern -- an ailing relative, getting laid off, being robbed, violating the law. However, there are ...

Silence gets such a bad rap these days, and I don't know why. I've heard people say they loathe being in typically quiet settings -- say, libraries, churches, or local parks -- where it's so hushed in there that it totally unnerves them. I recently visited my alma mater's enormous library, which spans eight spacious floors. The sixth and seventh floors have been designated "quiet areas" where talking is all but forbidden. If someone on campus wishes to hear nothing but a pin drop while studying or working, they know to go to the library. It's my go-to place to get some reading done when I find myself too distracted at home. I only wish I had availed of it more when I was a student there. As an introvert, it's hardly a surprise that I relish silence. It helps me recharge my batteries after long days at work spent in meetings and alongside people around the office who just don't know when to zip it. Extroverts find silence off-putting bec...

A new study in the journal of Current Biology establishes a link between temporary anxiety and -- wait for it -- obsessive cleaning. It turns out that being in an anxious state may in fact make people tidy up.  Researchers primed a group of college students into freaking out over a public speaking task. They were presented with a shiny statue and asked to prepare a speech about it in front of a panel of experts. Following the speech, they were told to clean the object. (In addition, there was a control group comprised of students who were not required to give a speech.) Those who had to give the anxiety-inducing speech were more repetitive in how they cleaned. The amount of anxiety the students reported feeling over the task predicted how many repeated movements they made while cleaning, as well as how long they cleaned the object before they deemed it reasonably clean. In times of stress, people might turn to repetitive behavior like cleaning because it gives the...

Feeling frustrated? Stressed? Gloomy? I've been there myself. Whether we're at work or home, it's normal for negative thoughts to permeate our thinking, leading to depression, anxiety, and other unpleasant health outcomes. Here are 3 proven tricks for turning that frown upside down: 1. Just smile: Research shows that merely smiling for no reason can raise your spirits in a big way. In fact, studies have found that when subjects smiled while talking to someone on the phone, the people on the other end perceived the subjects as being in a good mood. 2. Focus your attention on what makes you happy: Seeking out positive, feel-good stimuli allows you to mentally disconnect from your troubles, even if only for a minute or two. For example, I have always had a soft spot for animals. When I'm down in the dumps at work, nothing changes my attitude for the better like seeing pictures or videos of baby animals, whether they be kittens, puppies, or pandas. In your case, it mi...

I have found that two-day weekends are hardly enough to do everything on my To Do List -- and I don't even have kids!  I can only imagine my time being cut a lot shorter with a little one running around. My wife and I recently bought a condo and here we are, two months later, still in the process of moving in and getting settled. I don't know whose idea it was to have people work five days a week and have only two days off, but I think working four days and having three off seems a lot more fair. After all, once we leave work each day, many businesses -- like insurance companies and banks -- have either closed or are a couple of hours short of doing so. How nice would it be to have Fridays off? That would give us an extra day to run errands so that we have two days left over to spend with our loved ones. I suppose this could be problematic, though, because if those in private industry are off Fridays, that means many of the people working for the companies providing the ser...

I have found that the trick to relaxing is redirecting your thoughts. After all, stress is, in large part, mental. I know, it's easier said than done -- especially in our busy, fast-paced lives. But all you need to do is take a few minutes each day to mentally disconnect from what you're doing and focus on those things that bring a smile to your face. Maybe it's your pet, your faith, your garden, a small business you're running on the side, or even a charity. In my case, I am an animal lover, so looking at pictures or videos of kittens does wonders on my mood. I don't have a pet as we speak, but glancing at those fur balls makes me look forward to the day I'll have one I can call my own. I also seem to feel better when or after listening to relaxing music, especially R&B. You'd be surprised at just how effective redirecting your thoughts can really be, even if you do it only once or twice a day.  Try it!