Stress of the Oscar Nomination Can give you a Stroke

If you are an actor nominated for the Oscar, or know someone who is nominated, please tell them about how to manage stress in order to avoid this calamity caused by stress.

Being nominated for an Oscar can be stressful. Will I win? Will I lose? If I win will I flub my acceptance speech? Will I trip in my new shoes? Will my dress hold up?

Evidence of this comes in a report by UCLA researcher Hanna Smith, given at the meeting of the American Stroke Association in Los Angeles. She reported that Oscar nominees may get a stroke or cardiovascular accident! Turns out that the incidence of stroke among Oscar nominated performers is at least 7.3%.

But that figure is based on media reports only. The Smith report states that there are probably many strokes that occur that don’t make media headlines. Those Oscar nominated performers include James Garner, Richard Burton, Gary Grant, Kirk Douglas, Bette Davis, Elizabeth Taylor, Sharon Stone and others.

There is no question that being in the spotlight, the need to censor every word and action can be stressful. There are many stressful occupations; is acting one of the most? The answer appears to be yes. There is always the stress of acceptance or rejection. One of my patients related this: “In the morning I was rejected for a part because I looked too young; in the afternoon I was rejected for a role because I was too old!

If you take into account that many performers have access to good medical care, good diet, and all kinds of good therapists, you need to ask why is this stroke incidence so high?

In my book, Stressed? Anxiety? Your Cure is in the Mirror there are examples of patients from the entertainment field:
Being rejected for a role you really wanted
Long periods of unemployment
Seeing someone unqualified get a role you auditioned for
Getting the job, giving it your very best, and having the project or play cancelCover For Stressed- Anxiety- Your Cure is in the Mirror_COVER-1ed or fail.

If you are an actor, there is always stress. The therapy is to change from sending stress messages to the brain, to sending no-stress messages to the stress center that puts out those bad chemicals.

In the book there is an example of an actress, Lillian, with stress health problems who was advised to change professions. Instead, she learned the method of sending no-stress messages to her brain and was able to continue in her chosen profession.

How can a person reduce bad stress chemicals? In stress you breathe rapidly. If you count your breathing – count four when you inhale, and count six when you exhale, that relaxed breathing sends a message to your brain that this is a no-stress situation, so the adrenalin stops.

In stress you clench your jaw, ready to fight. If you use the looking glass to see your face, jaw, and shoulders relax, that sends a message to the brain not to release stress chemicals. With relaxed muscles you can’t have stress or anxiety.

In stress you frown, so if you smile or laugh, then there is no release of stress chemicals.

Stress chemicals are bad for your health. It is the stress chemicals that narrow the blood vessels, raise blood pressure, and damage the heart. If you narrow the blood vessels to the brain, you can get a stroke. If your blood pressure is too high, an artery in your brain can rupture.

Few persons get to be stress free by simply changing professions. For many persons, laying around the house is more stressful than a day at the office. Becoming stress free is just like building a muscle or learning to type. You need to practice. The book, Stressed? Anxiety? Your Cure is in the Mirror shows how to do these actions with a mirror so they become fully automatic. It is like having a full time coach to guide you. With this coach anyone can reduce stress harmful effects.

No matter what your profession or interest, developing the no-stress actions can make your life healthier and, if you are an actress, might even help prevent a stroke when you are nominated for an Oscar.

If you watch the academy awards audience, the person’s in the audience with a smile and a mirror in their hand are probably those who have read the book, Stressed? Anxiety? Your Cure is in the Mirror!