Forty-four percent of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress; 75 to 90 percent of all physician office visits are for stress-related ailments and complaints; stress is linked to the six leading causes of death - heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has declared stress a hazard of the workplace.

Stress is expensive.  We all pay a stress tax whether we know it or not.  Health-care costs account for more than 13 percent of our Gross Domestic Product, escalating yearly at a dizzying rate. In terms of lost hours due to absenteeism, reduced productivity, and worker's compensation benefits, stress costs American industry more than $300 billion annually, or $7,500 per worker per year.

Stress plays havoc with our health, productivity, pocketbooks, and lives, but stress is necessary, even desirable. Exciting or challenging events such as the birth of a child, completion of a major project at work, or moving to a new city generate as much or more stress than tragedy or disaster. Without it, life would be dull.

Stress is a confusing and mysterious problem for most people, to many of those who manage their health care, and to companies that pay ever-mounting health-insurance premiums. Six myths surround stress. Dispelling them is a first step toward understanding stress and how it affects our lives and finances.

Expand your understanding of stress by finding out what it's not. Examine the common Myths and Misunderstandings about stress and see how they may be influencing your thinking about stress and its consequences.