11 mins ago 3 min read
Share with your network!
April is Stress Awareness Month in the US, where as much as 53% of women are reportedly stressed. And the local stats are not much better. Cassey Chambers, operational director at the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG), says more than 60% of calls coming in currently are from women, either calling in for help for themselves or out of concern about a partner, spouse, child or friend.
Dr Rykie Liebenberg, a specialist psychiatrist at Sandton Mediclinic, says one of the main reasons women are more prone to stress and anxiety than their male counterparts is estrogen levels. Estrogen levels change dramatically over a woman’s life cycle, in relation to various reproductive events and these shifts are linked to the onset or recurrence of major depressive episodes. “During the childbearing years, when estrogen is hig