Research

Stress-related illnesses result in the highest global disease burden worldwide. Founded by Dr. Rajita Sinha in 2007, the Yale Stress Center began as the organizational and administrative “home” for interdisciplinary basic and clinical scientists studying stress, trauma, pain, adversity, emotions and health and those treating stress-related diseases. The Center is the research hub for a number of interdisciplinary initiatives that further the understanding of the deleterious effects of stress on the brain, cognitive and emotional processes, body and behavior. Development of novel interventions to prevent and treat stress-related diseases is also a major goal of the Center. The research is supported by Yale University School of Medicine, grants from the National Institutes of Health and other research foundations, private entities and large program initiatives.

Broad topic areas

• Stress and trauma effects on perception, emotions, learning and memory, pain, self-control and decision making and health behaviors.
• Stress and trauma effects on risk of chronic diseases.
• Stress and trauma interactions with reward, motivation and effects on rewarding behaviors.
• The impact of drugs and highly palatable foods on stress biology.
• Reversal of the deleterious effects of stress and trauma on cognition, emotions, behaviors and health.
• Novel preventive and treatment strategies for stress reduction to optimize health and functioning and improve patient-related outcomes.
• Brain and body recovery from stress, trauma and stress-related diseases.

Get Involved

To learn more about participating in ongoing studies, check out the Yale Stress Center Participate page or give us a call at 1-888-Y-STRESS (1-888-978-7377)

To learn more about training opportunities and joining the team, check out the Yale Stress Center Training page or email Dr. Rajita Sinha with your CV and letter of interest.