Roberson – chap 10 and 11

Dr. Nonterah warned us against using direct quotes from our sources in a literature review, but since this is a blog post, I’m going to do it. At the bottom of page 130, the author says, “Similarly, there is little or no evidence that people who are heavily involved in their jobs or work long hours are more prone to heart disease. It all depends on what kinds of stresses you face and how you deal with them.” Upon reading that, I had half a mind to stop reading, but I kept going. As it turns out, they did find a correlation between those with the most successful careers to have lived the longest. This was not so surprising given what we know about those higher in SES and their better health and the fact that (be it unfortunate or not) we typically measure success by money (though Terman did have some other variables). In chapter 11, they discussed religion and prayer and agreed that religion can be a good guideline/structure for one’s overall health and how he/she lives life. It is harder to measure “direct” benefits of religion since they work in the supernatural and one’s beliefs.

My relationship with God actually currently keeps me grounded and less stressed than I’d say the average college student, but that’s not to say all Christians (or insert other religion here) have it and keep it put together… I do not know yet what I wish to do in life, or perhaps what my ultimate calling in life is (I have an idea of it though), but to this point I have done fairly well at handling all of my responsibilities and keeping my stress relatively low. I have plans of “becoming successful” as most college students do even, despite not knowing exactly where God is taking me, but whether I make “as much money as I want” or not, I hope to make the most of it. To that point, my faith (as well as the structure and seemingly less amount of risky behaviors it helps me avoid) will allow me still to live longer, safer, and healthier.