Clinical psychologist Meg Van Deusen ’85 writes book tackling the scourge of stress on modern life
When was the last time you talked to a good friend? Not on social media. Not on email. But face-to-face? That kind of real contact, connecting with someone who cares, can actually reduce your stress. In her new book, Stressed in the U.S.: 12 Tools to Tackle Anxiety, Loneliness, Tech-Addiction, and More, clinical psychologist Meg Van Deusen ’85 details the connections between loneliness, sleep-deprivation, social media addiction, and gut imbalance to stress. And while the prevailing psychology theory tells us secure attachments to other people helps us be more resilient to stress, modern culture is creating barriers to forming these healthy attachments—in America, specifically, Van Deusen points to political divisiveness, tech addiction, mass shootings, and economic disparity. In her book, Van Deusen offers ways to combat the scourge of anxiety and stress in the modern era, from connecting with others to being mindful.
