DiscoverMentally Stronger with Therapist Amy Morin267 — The Surprising Truth About Stress and Why Trying to Relax Is Making You Feel Worse with Dr. Rebecca Heiss
267 — The Surprising Truth About Stress and Why Trying to Relax Is Making You Feel Worse with Dr. Rebecca Heiss

267 — The Surprising Truth About Stress and Why Trying to Relax Is Making You Feel Worse with Dr. Rebecca Heiss

Update: 2025-11-24
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Do you feel like you’re constantly battling stress or that you're stressed out all the time? Do attempts to relax backfire and cause you to feel even worse? If so, today's episode is for you.


My guest today is Dr. Rebecca Heiss, a stress physiologist who says we can change the way stress affects us. In fact, she says we can turn our biological responses to stress into an advantage once we know how.


Some of the things we discuss are:



  • Why you should stop trying to get rid of your stress

  • Why believing stress is bad for you might actually kill you

  • Why animals don't get stressed out

  • How to trick your brain into making stress an advantage

  • Why avoiding stressful situations often causes more anxiety than facing them

  • The role of oxytocin as a "courage hormone" and the importance of connection

  • How to use a "catastrophe diary" to manage negative thinking

  • Why service to others is the only thing that truly mitigates stress

  • Practical ways to reframe your routine instead of just adding stress-reduction tasks

  • Why curiosity and fear cannot coexist


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Links & Resources


RebeccaHeiss.com


Springboard




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267 — The Surprising Truth About Stress and Why Trying to Relax Is Making You Feel Worse with Dr. Rebecca Heiss

267 — The Surprising Truth About Stress and Why Trying to Relax Is Making You Feel Worse with Dr. Rebecca Heiss

Amy Morin