Stressless Saturday: Testing Your Stress Level

Our lives are filled with both happy and sad events. Many of us do not realize, however, that all of life’s changes can result in stress on both our physical and emotional health.

Changes occur in everyone’s life. Some are everyday experiences. Others are not so common. All can cause stress and anxiety.

The list that follows is a stress test that was developed by Drs. Thomas H. Holmes and Richard H. Rahe to help people understand what causes stress in their lives.

Place a check beside each event that you have experienced in the last year and then add the attached point values.


HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST*
Rank Event Value Your Score
1. Death of spouse 100 ____
2. Divorce 73 ____
3. Marital separation 65 ____
4. Jail term 63 ____
5. Death of close family member 63 ____
6. Personal injury or illness 53 ____
7. Marriage 50 ____
8. Fired from work 47 ____
9. Marital reconciliation 45 ____
10. Retirement 45 ____
11. Change in family member’s health 44 ____
12. Pregnancy 40 ____
13. Sex difficulties 39 ____
14. Addition to family 39 ____
15. Business readjustment 39 ____
16. Change in financial status 38 ____
17. Death of close friend 37 ____
18. Change in number of marital arguments 35 ____
19. Mortgage or loan over $10,000 31 ____
20. Foreclosure of mortgage or loan 30 ____
21. Change in work responsibilities 29 ____
22. Son or daughter leaving home 29 ____
23. Trouble with in-laws 29 ____
24. Outstanding personal achievement 28 ____
25. Spouse begins or stops work 26 ____
26. Starting or finishing school 26 ____
27. Change in living conditions 25 ____
28. Revision of personal habits 24 ____
29. Trouble with boss 23 ____
30. Change in work hours, conditions 20 ____
31. Change in residence 20 ____
32. Change in schools 20 ____
33. Change recreational habits 19 ____
34. Change in church activities 19 ____
35. Change in social activities 18 ____
36. Mortgage or loan under $10,000 18 ____
37. Change in sleeping habits 16 ____
38. Change in number of family gatherings 15 ____
39. Change in eating habits 14 ____
40. Vacation 13 ____
41. Christmas season 12 ____
42. Minor violation of the law 11 ____
Total _______

SCORING: Add up the point values of all the items checked. If your score is 300 or more, you stand an almost 80% chance of getting sick in the near future as a result of the events. If your score is 150 to 299, the chances are about 50%. If less than 150, the chances are about 30%.

This scale suggests that life changes require an effort to adapt and then to regain stability. This process probably saps energy the body would ordinarily use to maintain itself, so susceptibility to illness increases.