Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers: A Guide to Stress, Stress Related Diseases, and Coping

I’ll keep it concise. This is the best book I’ve read on the subject of stress and how it affects our minds and bodies.

This book has helped me understand the science of stress and some unpleasant results that I've been experiencing. I'm someone who always wants to know WHY certain things are happening, and finds that helpful when figuring out how to fix them. I really like the author's tone: He's a scientist, but one with a great sense of humor and also a lot of compassion. This book, while not exactly New Agey/touchy-feely, is also not cold and clinical as it explains the biology behind stress and how it affects body and mind. Once you reach the point where you say, "OK, now I understand how stress is affecting me ... Now what do I DO about it?," you'll probably need resources other than this book. But if, like me, you like to start out with a good understanding of what the problem is, then this book is a great place to find that foundation.

This is possibly the best anatomy-phys book I've ever read, and as a nurse I've read a few! Now don't get stressed out here! I truely mean it, this one is fun. No formulae to memorize, no complicated Krebs Cycles to navigate, no difficult Latin origin and insertion sites to locate, just pure fun. The author has the knack--no let's call it for what it really is, a rare gift--for taking the dry facts of biological functioning and making an amusing but clearly informative tale of it all. Dr Sapolsky has a purpose beyond the mere dissemination of information on anatomy physiology of humans, zebras, lab rats, or baboons to the lay person. His intention is to show that the modern lifestyle, and how the individual reacts to it, can have a major impact on health and even on the economy of the country. I'd recommend the book to anyone with an interest in how the body works as wonderfully as it does, to those who wonder why they get sick when they're stressed out but their neighbor never seems to, to those who want to lead a healthier lifestyle and need a little background information to get started, and to high school or college students who can't quite get into that biology class because the content seems too difficult--or just plain too boring--to manage.

As a veterinary student, I was searching the shelves of our library looking for a different book when I stumbled onto Sapolsky's work. Intrigued by the title, I read through the preface and was immediately hooked. I checked the book out and read it cover to cover that night--in spite of my other responsibilities.Sapolsky has a true talent for simplifying the complex, without patronizing the reader or diluting the facts. Even with a few years of vet school behind me, I still found myself learning something from every page. Not only that, but I was looking forward to reading each page, wondering what hilarious story or anecdote would come next.I wish I had read Dr. Sapolsky's work before I had taken first-year physiology. I would have been far better off.[As a side note, I was touched by the dedication.]

Having sufferred a heart attack at age 50 in July 1998, I have been searching for solid credible information to explain the common question, "Why me?". Sapolosky addressed all of my difficult questions and some that I hadn't thought of. His easy to read style and humourous personality makes his serious topic more appealing.Cardiologists in my area do not accept stress as one of the major risk factors in heart disease. Having had virtually ongoing job stress and periodic family crises such depression, a brain tumour, job loss, involuntary job reassignments and now bonafide heart disease, it is my personal phsyican's opinion that "stress" is one of the major factors of heart disease and also plays a role in other serious diseases such as ulcers, colitis, memory, sex and aging and depression.Saplolsky addresses the main questions and issues in a very readable and guides the reader to options and solutions for developing a personal action plan.Highly recommended to spouses, supporters and people who are willing to acknowledge that stress might be a factor in their health.