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The book has been divided into
three sections. Section one provides details of certain
historical and theoretical facts. Dean Ornish advocates a change
in lifestyle, including dietary changes. This was known to India
thousands of years ago and has been described in detail in the
Charaka Samhita, which forms the basis of Ayurveda.
It was
considered apt to start the history of stress first in the
eastern part of the world and then in the West. Section one also
dispels some of the myths surrounding stress. There is also a
chapter on the models of stress. Many people may question the
inclusion of theoretical formulations in a book meant for
practitioners. However, the chapter is in tune with the
philosophy underlying the book’s theme, that is, it is not
aimed to be a simple step-by-step guide. The other chapters in
this section examine in very simple language known facts
regarding the sources, physiology and consequences of the stress
response, and how stress can cause disease.
Section 2 is
devoted to stress at the work place. With CEOs increasingly
demanding an 18-20-hour work day, stress at the work place is
inevitable. Larger organisations bring with them their own
problems, creating even greater stress for their employees. This
section also includes a chapter on the problem of a dual career,
its need and consequences for both husband and wife. The focus
is how to have a career and enjoy it, how to strike a balance
between home and office, family and work.
Section 3
focuses on the most important area of coping with stress. At the
end of the day, each individual finds his own way of coping with
stress, but all methods do not necessarily solve the problem.
Stress may often be temporarily relieved only to emerge again in
a more aggravated form. The section begins with an explanation
of the concept of coping. Special emphasis has been placed on
the health problem.
The next two
chapters deal with specific stress management strategies –
both individual and organisation-based strategies. Corporate
restructuring has scaled new heights in the past few years.
However, what does it do to the individual employee? We all
agree that such action is often necessary, but it is equally
important to understand and manage the resultant stress.
Is stress
phenomenon mainly of the western world? Definitely not. PERC, a
Hong Kong-based consultancy firm, had stated in a 1997 report
that stress levels in Asia are on the rise. India, too, is no
exception. It ranks just belowVietnam, South Korea, Thailand,
Hong Kong, Philippines, China, Singapore, and Japan (in that
order) and was rated 6.1 on a 10-point rating scale. A New
Delhi-based NGO reported that in 1996 4,100 persons contacted
its helpline for people on the verge of committing suicide. This
figure definitely requires some serious thinking. Stress in
India can take many forms. For example, executive stress, police
stress, marital stress, stress among the youth and in adults,
unemployment stress, job stress, post-retirement stress,
premenstrual stress and post-menstrual stress.
The author
explains that we know much more about stress than ever before.
Internet service revealed 25,68,931 documents under stress on a
single site (, yet we seem to be making little headway in
solving our stress related problems. The question is why it is
so. We have heard of work place stress. Today there is talk of
trauma at the work place. We are all aware of scores of
stress-busting strategies, yet their application does little to
reduce stress. Are we not trying to find out
"quickies" without understanding the problem in its
entire entirety? To understand all the ramifications, we require
an in-depth analysis of the phenomenon of stress — its
sources, process, and consequences. Only after that can an
appropriate stress management programme be tailored to suit each
individual person.
Stress
management therefore is very important for all individuals,
especially those who are dealing with the hazards of life and
active in result-oriented processes. Government servants hardly
have the stress because they are in the habit of taking things
either lightly or for granted.
An important
question that arises about stress is: who will bear the cost of
the stress treatment? The employee or the organisation, the
society, or the taxpayer?. Corporate structuring has scaled new
heights in the past few years. But what does it do to the
individual employee? We all agree that such action is necessary
but it is equally important to understand and manage the
resultant stress.
The author says
it is normally argued that a major reason for stress is that a
person often fails to recognise that she or he is stressed, or
to understand the sources and effects of stress. Once the
mechanism underlying the phenomenon is understood, the
individual will be better able to select the stress management
technique that will best work for him or her.
Another point
argued is that professionals need not only to manage their own
stress, but should also be responsive to stress experienced by
their subordinates. Only if they are aware of the physical,
psychological and occupational hazards can they do justice to
the much-parleyed term "quality of work life" (QWL).
Various experts have also dealt with problems faced by workers
in certain industries and psycho-social problems of migrant
workers.
This volume is written in a
jargon free and accessible style, it will be useful for both
professionals and scholars.
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