Does volunteering protect you from the damage of stress?
Stress for Success
May 3, 2011


I know I admonish you to lower stress through a variety of ways like exercise (to which I can hear your collective eye-rolling), relaxing, etc. Regularly doing so protects you from the damage of excessive stress hormones.

There are other non-eye-rolling ways to reduce stress, too. Since National Volunteer Week is in April, let me suggest volunteering as a way to balance your stress.

Volunteering can be an especially rewarding stress break because it’s believed you release the hormone oxytocin when you connect and bond with people, which is believed to protect you from the ravages of stress. Plus, some believe it’s actually impossible to be depressed when you help someone.

I’ve personally volunteered at something all of my life: tutored inner-city kids in Spanish, served in the Peace Corps for over two years, sat on countless boards of directors, and helped the Red Cross after Hurricane Charley. For the past five years I’ve volunteered weekly at Healthpark as a cuddler working with premature babies and sing in and am now on the organizing board for the newly formed Symphonic Chorale of SW FL, formerly known as the SW FL Symphony Chorus.

Sure, some nights I’m exhausted and don’t want to go out and honor these commitments. But once there I realize these activities are my reward: the music we sing fills my heart in a way that nothing else can and the babies, well, they’re adorable little babies.

To reduce your stress, check out volunteer options such as:
· Volunteermatch.org: This matches up volunteer opportunities with over 70,000 nonprofit organizations;
· AmeriCorps: Each year, AmeriCorps offers opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups. Members who complete service may be eligible for an education award of up to $4,725 to pay for college, graduate school, or to pay back qualified student loans. You receive a living allowance during your term of service;
· Points of Light Institute: a national nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to engaging more people and resources in solving serious social problems;
· The Red Cross: helps prepare communities for emergencies;
· SCORE: Senior Corps of Retired Executives is a nonprofit organization which provides small business counseling and training under a grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). SCORE members are successful, retired business men and women who volunteer their time to assist aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners. There are SCORE chapters in every state. My husband and I had a wonderful SCORE counselor who helped us when we started my husband’s business. We met monthly and felt a commitment to him to have our homework done and to meet the goals we set with his help.
· Help a neighbor in need;

What better use of your spare time is there than to help others? Whether you’re a medical professional, attorney, retired businessperson or a stay-at-home parent, do your stress level and the world a favor; share your talents with those who need them.

Jacquelyn Ferguson, M. S., is an international speaker and a Stress and Wellness Coach. Order her book, Let Your Body Win: Stress Management Plain & Simple, at http://www.letyourbodywin.com/bookstore.html and request she speak to your organization.