Earlier this year, researchers from HMRI’s Heart and Stroke Research Program commenced the FOCUSR study, a community-based research study on stress and stress management that aims to understand more about how Australians experience and manage stress.

With stress a known contributor to a number of poor health outcomes, including increased risk of cardiovascular disease and psychological disorders, understanding how to best manage stress is important.

The interim results from the FOCUS-R stress study have come back and there are strong indications to suggest that there are five key things that people do to manage stress, as well as three major causes. 

Study lead, Dr Madeleine Hinwood, says “We’re never going to get rid of stress but we can certainly develop research-backed resources to help manage it. 

“Our study aims to build a huge dataset. This information will help us build personalised strategies to help people monitor and manage stress, help us create guidelines and recommendations for clinicians, and provide policymaking evidence in the healthcare space. 

“We know how stress affects health but we don’t know how stress management affects it. This is what we’re trying to find out,” says Dr Hinwood.  

So far, the study has found that people are: 

• Exercising 

Dr Hinwood says, “The study is showing that people are exercising to manage stress but that they are doing a wide variety of activities. This suggests that one size does not fit all. It’s unlikely we’ll be able to recommend one or two activities for a whole population. It’s going to be much more personalised than that.” 

• Being outside/getting some sunshine 

“This keeps coming up and suggests that the extra access to nature that comes with the spring weather might be helpful for managing stress,” says Dr Hinwood.   

• Seeing a psychologist 

“This is a key finding as many people don’t have the resources to see a psychologist. This speaks to the distribution of wealth and access to healthcare. This could be useful in policy making,” says Dr Hinwood.  

• Drinking alcohol 

“Alcohol has emerged as a common way people manage stress, reflecting its role in social settings. However, this highlights the importance of raising awareness about the potential health risks associated with excessive alcohol consumption, and encouraging a variety of stress management alternatives” says Dr Hinwood.  

• Taking time off work/having a holiday/self-care 

“Work is coming up as the number one cause of stress so it makes sense that time away from work is helping to manage that stress,” says Dr Hinwood.  

So what are the reported causes of stress? 

According to the study, the things that people are finding most stressful are: 

1. Work 
2. Family, including caring duties 
3. Chronic illness and health problems 

Dr Hinwood says she is enormously grateful to the participants in the study.  

“These people are helping us with such an amazing thing, and I want to thank every one of them for trusting us with their data. We’re finding out how stress is harmful and coming up with better interventions to track and manage stress,” she says.  

The FOCUS-R study is still actively recruiting. Participants receive a five-minute survey every fortnight for a year. To sign up, click here. https://www.focusr.com.au/