Upward Facing Dog

Zeitgeist is a German word which translates as “spirit of the times.” “Zeit” translates to “time or era” and “geist” to “spirit.” Zeitgest has come to mean the trends, fads or cultural intellect of the era.

A “stressor” is anything that provokes stress, an event or context that elevates the adrenal stress response and disrupts homeostasis in the body. Typically stressors fall into categories such as environmental stressors (traffic sounds, crowds, pollution), daily events (hectic work days, late for appointments, big projects due, chauffeuring children to events, rush hour traffic), life changing events (death, divorce, marriage, disease, disability). All of these are known to cause physiological and psychological changes in the body.

A “Zeitgeist Stressor” goes one step further, or wider, to include cultural, sociological or even political events or things that affect groups of people, communitites, as well as simultaneously the individual adrenal stress response. Things that fall into the category are (but not limited to) war, random violence (such as teen shootings), economical changes and technology.

As individuals, we think we’re unaffected by our own zeitgeist, but in fact, we’re merely adapting. How we’re adapting is the more relevant question. Do we really ignore the story on the news about the shooting at a local shopping center or does it actually affect our minds and bodies deeper than we’re aware? Does it feel great to be constantly connected to our technology devices or have they become a burden? The topic, Zeitgeist Stressors, is intended to bring more awareness to how the “spirit of the times” is affecting us biologically and psychologically.