{"id":112214,"date":"2025-08-01T14:34:59","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T14:34:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stress.org\/?post_type=news&#038;p=112214"},"modified":"2025-08-01T14:34:59","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T14:34:59","slug":"yes-your-stress-is-contagious","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.stress.org\/news\/yes-your-stress-is-contagious\/","title":{"rendered":"Yes, Your Stress Is Contagious"},"content":{"rendered":"<h5 class=\"blog-entry__subtitle--full\">Research supports that one person&#8217;s stress can directly impact another&#8217;s health.<\/h5>\n<h5 class=\"blog_entry__key-points-title\">Key points<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"blog_entry__key-points-item-list\">\n<li class=\"blog_entry__key-points-item\">Research suggests that stress not only affects you but can negatively impact those around you as well.<\/li>\n<li class=\"blog_entry__key-points-item\">The Dyadic Biobehavioral Stress Model can help us better understand how stress impacts both partners.<\/li>\n<li class=\"blog_entry__key-points-item\">Stress can have an impact on both partners\u2019 endocrine, cardiovascular, and immune functioning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"field-name-body\">\n<p>Stress is inevitable. We are bound to encounter various stressors in our lives. This is simply the nature of being human and of living complex, multifaceted lives. We often view stress as affecting only the individual experiencing the specific stressor. But recent research shows that one individual\u2019s stress or behavioral response to stressors can have a direct impact on their close loved ones, particularly their marital or romantic partner. It makes sense in simplistic terms: Stress affects mood, behavior, and thinking, so it stands to reason that one person\u2019s stress responses can have an impact on another person, particularly when two people are cohabitating or living a shared life. From a psychological perspective, a 2021 Purdue University study (Shrout) reveals that \u201cpartners influence their own and each other\u2019s health across several\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at stressful\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/stress\" hreflang=\"en\">stressful<\/a>\u00a0contexts.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"markup-replacement-slot markup-replacement-slot-0\" data-slot-position=\"0\"><\/div>\n<h5>Actor Effects and Partner Effects<\/h5>\n<p>Breaking it down further, we can view the person directly experiencing the stress as the \u201cactor\u201d and the other person who is affected by the actor\u2019s stress as the \u201cpartner.\u201d Shrout frames this as a \u201cDyadic Biobehavioral Stress Model.\u201d A dyad, by definition, is something that consists of two elements or parts. In this model, the dyad is between the stressed person (actor) and the person impacted by the other\u2019s stress (partner). Within this dyad, \u201cpartners influence how each other see and react emotionally and physiologically to the stressor.\u201d Simplified, if the actor has a negative behavioral stress response, such as\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at anger\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/anger\" hreflang=\"en\">anger<\/a>, withdrawal, or numbing behaviors, there is a direct and noticeable negative impact on the partner. In a practical example, if John experiences\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at work-related stress\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/burnout\" hreflang=\"en\">work-related stress<\/a>\u00a0and responds by sinking into a\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at depressed\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/depression\" hreflang=\"en\">depressed<\/a>\u00a0mood and becoming isolated and ornery, this will impact his wife Joan\u2019s mood and behavior as well.<\/p>\n<h5>Biological Impact<\/h5>\n<p>If both John (actor) and Joan (partner) are negatively impacted by John\u2019s stress, Shrout posits that significant physical health problems may arise. The\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at endocrine\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/hormones\" hreflang=\"en\">endocrine<\/a>\u00a0system, which regulates the release of cortisol, the body\u2019s naturally occurring stress hormone, is affected as it responds to the stressful situation by producing even more cortisol. Shrout\u2019s research shows that \u201cat the beginning of the day, cortisol levels were similar regardless of a partner&#8217;s stress, but differences emerged after the conflict.\u201d So, if through the course of the day, John\u2019s stress increases, both his and Joan\u2019s cortisol levels begin increasing, resulting in further stress and physiological symptoms, such as increased heart rate, heightened\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at anxiety\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/anxiety\" hreflang=\"en\">anxiety<\/a>, and panic-type physical responses.<\/p>\n<p>A 2018 study (Wilson et al.) concluded that actor-partner stress contributes to higher inflammation. Inflammation affects the cardiovascular and immune systems and can have long-term negative effects on physical and emotional health. So, put together, a dyad of stress in a relationship can lead to significant health risks. Another study (Butler and Randall, 2013) concludes that \u201cpartners&#8217; physiological stress responses rise and fall together and mutually influence one another over time\u2026A partner can heighten or dampen a person&#8217;s own physiological and biological stress response, altering both partners&#8217; health consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"markup-replacement-slot markup-replacement-slot-3\" data-slot-position=\"3\"><\/div>\n<h5>The Dyad in Daily Life<\/h5>\n<p>Because our lives will never be immune to stress, being aware of Shrout\u2019s Dyadic Biobehavioral Stress Model can be helpful in keeping both the actor and the partner healthy despite life\u2019s normal stressors, such as\u00a0<a class=\"basics-link\" title=\"Psychology Today looks at career\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/basics\/career\" hreflang=\"en\">career<\/a>, family, finances, and other widely experienced sources of stress. Recognizing that we alone do not experience stress\u2019s impact on our well-being can help us to understand the larger benefits of responding to stress in a healthy way. In essence, if I want to ensure that not only me, but my entire family, remains as healthy as possible, it is incumbent upon me to remain constantly aware of the stress I am carrying, how I am responding to it, and what I am doing to manage and reduce it using healthy means. Anytime I am able to manage my stress in a healthy and adaptive way, I am benefiting not only my own physical and emotional health but also the health of my close loved ones.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"blog-entry-references\" data-hide-large-count-items=\"false\">\n<p class=\"blog-entry-references-label\"><strong>References<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"blog-entry-references-content-items\">\n<div class=\"blog-entry-references-content\">\n<p>M. Rosie Shrout, The health consequences of stress in couples: A review and new integrated Dyadic Biobehavioral Stress Model,<br \/>\nBrain, Behavior, &amp; Immunity &#8211; Health, Volume 16, 2021, 100328, 12666-3546,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.bbih.2021.100328.\">https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.bbih.2021.100328.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>S.J. Wilson, B.E. Bailey, W.B. Malarkey, J.K. Kiecolt-Glaser. Linking marital support to aging-related biomarkers: both age and marital quality matter. J. Gerontol. B Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci., 76 (2) (2021), pp. 273-282.<\/p>\n<p>S.J. Wilson, B.E. Bailey, L.M. Jaremka,\u00a0<em>et al.\u00a0<\/em>When couples&#8217; hearts beat together: synchrony in heart rate variability during conflict predicts heightened inflammation throughout the day. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 93 (September 2017) (2018), pp. 107-116,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.psyneuen.2018.04.017\">10.1016\/j.psyneuen.2018.04.017<\/a><\/p>\n<p>E.A. Butler, A.K. Randall. Emotional coregulation in close relationships. Emot Rev, 5 (2) (2013), pp. 202-210,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/1754073912451630\">10.1177\/1754073912451630<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/contributors\/phil-lane-msw-lcsw\" hreflang=\"en\">Phil Lane MSW, LCSW<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/blog\/am-i-dying\/202505\/yes-your-stress-is-contagious\">Original Post Psychology Today<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/stocksnap.io\/photo\/business-team-2C05UHUIR8\">Photo<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/stocksnap.io\/author\/directmedia\">Direct Media<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/stocksnap.io\/\">StockSnap<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Research supports that one person&#8217;s stress can directly impact another&#8217;s health. Key points Research suggests that stress not only affects you but can negatively impact those around you as well. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":112215,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"pmpro_default_level":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false},"categories":[12,178,142,159],"tags":[136,137,138,141,143,145,120,147],"class_list":["post-112214","news","type-news","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adult-stress","category-burnout","category-health","category-stress-in-your-body","tag-ais","tag-american-institute-of-stress","tag-anxiety","tag-health","tag-mental-health","tag-relaxation","tag-stress","tag-stress-management","pmpro-has-access"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Yes, Your Stress Is Contagious - 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