Difficult People Affect
Not only are difficult people in someone’s life possibly testing their patience, but they could also be affecting their health in unseen ways. New studies are emerging that indicate that the stress from dealing with difficult people could actually cause someone to age faster and even reduce their lifespan.
While no single relationship is ultimately going to dictate how well or how poorly they are going to live their life, dealing with difficult people could have an impact on their health.
Stress and Aging
Stress has been viewed as a major factor affecting physical well-being. When a person is stressed, the body responds to the situation by releasing chemicals such as cortisol and adrenaline into the blood.
This causes the heart, muscles, and brain to react to the situation. This reaction is meant to help the person cope with the situation. However, when the situation is prolonged, such as in a bad relationship, the body will be in a constant state of alert. This will cause the different parts of the body to slow down.
One of the ways in which chronic stress affects our bodies is in the shortening of telomeres, which are found at the end of chromosomes.
Telomeres naturally shorten as we age. However, previous studies suggested that stress can cause the shortening of telomeres at an accelerated rate. Shortened telomeres have been associated with various diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cognitive impairments.
A recent study that aimed to investigate the effects of interpersonal stress on our biological aging process found that people exposed to frequent negative interactions in their relationships had shorter telomeres.
The study controlled various factors such as socioeconomic status, lifestyle, and pre-existing medical conditions. This shows that interpersonal stress is directly affecting our biological aging.
Courtesy Of Manuela Daniel ( Flickr CC0)How Difficult Relationships Impact Health
Such challenging relationships can manifest in various ways, from complaining coworkers or manipulative associates to critical but well-meaning relationships with friends or family that affect self-esteem and create emotional stress.
While it is true that people experience differing levels of conflict in relationships, it is the constant pervasive negativity that seems to have the greatest overall impact on health.
Experts have noted that not only is it stressful dealing with such individuals, but the stress is actually measurable and has a significant effect on the heart rate, blood pressure, immune system, and metabolic rates. This leads to cellular aging.
It is also notable that the stress that comes about from dealing with such individuals has a significant effect not only on the physical well-being of the individual but also on the emotional and mental well-being of the individual.
It is, therefore, evident that an individual who is constantly subjected to stress from dealing with other individuals will be anxious, depressed, or even tired. The emotional exhaustion that comes about from such stress will have a negative effect on the mental well-being of the individual, thereby leading to a vicious cycle of stress that has a significant effect on the mental and emotional well-being of the individual.
Social isolation, which may sometimes emanate from the distancing of an individual from difficult people, may also negatively impact an individual’s well-being.
Strategies to Protect Someone’s Health
Maintaining health in the context of challenging interpersonal relationships involves being aware of one’s self, managing one’s stress, and being strategic in one’s social life.
One of the most important aspects of boundary setting is setting limits around time spent with individuals who tend to be negative or controlling.
Having a strong social support group of friends, family, or community connections is also important, as it can act as a buffer against the impact of stress.
A change of perspective can also help mitigate the impact of difficult individuals on one’s health.
For some, getting professional help from a therapist or counselor can be an effective way of learning how to deal with difficult individuals in a way that is healthy. Learning how to be calm and clear in dealing with conflict is a way of being able to continue interactions without being exposed to unhealthy stress.
Why Social Environment Matters
We are social creatures as a species, and the quality of our relationships can affect not only our mood states and mental well-being but even the physical processes that govern aging.
Positive relationships help us to be more resilient and to think flexibly, while negative relationships can undermine our long-term health. The impact of interpersonal stress is a critical component in maintaining overall wellness.
While difficult people cannot always be avoided, the awareness that they can impact health in a certain way promotes a positive approach to dealing with the situation.
Being selective about how to deal with stressors, which people to regularly interact with, and how to foster a positive social network can help to maintain good mental as well as physical health.
A Path to Longevity and Resilience
Ultimately, the facts serve as a reminder of the simple fact that the people with whom we surround ourselves throughout the day have the ability to impact the ways in which our bodies change over time.
By focusing on the importance of positive relationships and avoiding the effects of negative influences, we may be able to extend our longevity and improve the quality of life by realizing the ways in which emotional well-being and physical well-being are closely tied together.
Learning how to handle difficult relationships is not only a skill that requires emotional intelligence; it is a skill that requires intelligence in the ways in which longevity is defined.
Sources:
The Washington Post: Difficult people in your life might make you age faster, study suggests
The Guardian: Now we have proof: dealing with difficult people really does age you
Featured Image Courtesy of tomasz solinski Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Manuela Daniel Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
