Instead of Reducing Stress, Use Stress to Your Advantage

Recommended by performing artist Petra Gubik

Recommended by psychologist and TV host Nóra Szily

The world is unhappier and more stressed than ever

• 76% of Europeans are stressed at least once a week – a huge increase compared to data from a few years ago.

• 83% of employees say they experience workplace stress. The burnout rate has risen to 59%.

• 75% of students (secondary school and university) are constantly tense because of schoolwork.

• 75–90% of doctor's visits are due to stress-related complaints.

Stress affects your body (e.g. headaches, heart problems), your mental state (e.g. anxiety, depression) and your relationships.

For years we were taught: stress must be avoided. It must be reduced.

But what if this fight is doomed to fail from the start?

What if the very way you fight stress is what makes you sick?

There is a better way: instead of reducing stress, use stress to your advantage

Does the idea that stress can be good for your health sound radical?

If so, it's time to rethink stress!

Bella Bagdi explains the counterintuitive benefits of stress in an accessible way, offering practical insights that can improve your emotional well-being, performance and long-term health.

Drawing on the research findings of the past 10 years, the book Instead of Reducing Stress, Use Stress to Your Advantage shows how you can turn stress to your benefit.

If you also think that stress should be reduced or avoided, you need to read this thought-provoking book on the psychology of thriving under pressure!

Presenting the latest research findings, Bella offers a radically new perspective on how to deal with stress, and with her four-step T.E.L.E. method makes it tangible how to turn stress to your advantage. It works! I tried it too!

Dr. Csilla Jeszenszky

Psychotherapist, supervisor, mindfulness teacher, MSC instructor

What can you learn from the book?

It equips you with essential tools that help you thrive better in an increasingly toxic world.

By applying the T.E.L.E. method described in the book, you will be able to:

• Use stress as a catalyst for achieving your goals and for personal growth.

• Transform anxiety into courage and difficulties into meaning.

• Change your mindset so that stress builds rather than destroys.

• Be effective despite uncertainty and lack of self-confidence.

• Break free from the grip of painful feelings and negative thoughts.

• Eliminate self-sabotaging habits.

• Build real resilience.

• Stand by your own side even in times of the greatest difficulty.

Don't forget this!

Viewing stress as a useful rather than harmful part of life is associated with better health, emotional well-being and work performance – even during highly stressful periods.

Rethink stress!

Illustrative infographics help make the information presented in the book easy to understand and absorb.

The book is not merely a practical guide to using stress, but rather an invitation to an inner journey in which we can (re)discover ourselves and build inner resources. It manages to be scientifically grounded while also speaking to us in a deeply human voice through Bella's personal stories. This book is not only for adults, but also for teenagers who want to walk their own path of self-discovery.

Dr. Gabriella Dóczi-Vámos

Pedagogical expert, restorative mediator

This book is for you if…

YOU ARE A STUDENT (secondary school or university),
and you feel the waves of exams and expectations crashing over your head.

YOU ARE AN ACTIVE WORKER,
who would like to perform better at work without burning out.

YOU ARE AN ENTREPRENEUR, LEADER OR MANAGER,
and the weight of responsibility is pressing on your shoulders.

YOU WORK IN HEALTHCARE OR A HELPING PROFESSION,
and you carry other people's burdens day after day.

YOU ARE A PARENT,
and day after day you try to balance the tense triangle of work responsibilities, family life and the household.

YOU ARE AN ATHLETE, PERFORMER OR EXAM-TAKER,
and pressure to perform or exam nerves often paralyze you instead of helping you be at your best.

YOU ARE STARTING YOUR CAREER OR CHANGING CAREERS,
and uncertainty and the feeling of 'will I be good enough?' fill you with anxiety instead of excitement about new challenges.

YOU SIMPLY FEEL IT'S 'TOO MUCH',
and you'd like to regain control so that tension doesn't paralyze you, but finally serves and motivates you.

Did you know?

Research confirms that the way you cope with stress is contagious: if your attitude towards stress is more positive, the people around you – your loved ones or colleagues – will handle stress better.

You can take back power from stress. Not by fighting it, suppressing it or denying it. You can take back power by learning to understand, accept and use it.

The T.E.L.E. method, which helps you turn stress to your advantage!

The book is not just theory. It presents the practical T.E.L.E. method, which helps you change your attitude to stress step by step and learn to turn it to your advantage.

Practicing this method doesn't require hours every day; instead it teaches a mindset and sequence of actions with which, in any stressful moment, you can consciously choose growth, compassion and emotional courage instead of the usual 'fight, flight or freeze' reactions.

If you look at stress differently, you can discover its constructive side too!

It gives energy: in the short term, stress hormones such as cortisol fill you with energy and motivate you to overcome obstacles.

It makes you more resilient: overcoming manageable amounts of stress can have a 'stress inoculation' effect, which can make you mentally and physically more resistant to difficulties in the future. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

It encourages growth: a stressful life event can be a wake-up call that prompts you to re-evaluate your priorities and change the direction of your life. It can provide opportunities to learn new skills and grow personally.

Important! What the book is NOT about

This book does NOT deny that stress can also be destructive. An illness, trauma or grief is not a 'good' thing in itself. Nor is it about seeking out extra stress for yourself. So what is it about? The paradox of stress. Research shows that although stress can make you ill, it can also be the basis for transformative change and growing stronger. You can change your response to stress. Your beliefs about it directly influence its physiological and psychological outcomes. This book provides scientifically grounded tools for this crucial shift in mindset.

Meet the author: Bella Bagdi

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Psychologist, well-being expert

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Mindfulness teacher (MBSR, MBCT) and mindful self-compassion teacher (MSC)

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Member of the Positive Psychology Research Group at ELTE

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Founder and lead developer of the internationally award-winning Boldogságóra (Happiness Lesson) Program.

Bella's mission is to support the mental health of Hungarians with scientifically grounded methods, and thereby contribute to a happier, healthier and more compassionate society. She passionately translates the latest research in psychology and neuroscience into practical strategies for health, happiness and personal success. She is currently involved in two large-scale research projects focusing on the psychological factors influencing mental health at different stages of life.

Awards and recognition:

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2025 Forbes Makers Award for Most Authentic

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HundrED's Global Collection of the most impactful and scalable innovations for 2025.

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Boldogságóra – OTP Fáy Educational Innovation Award, lower primary category, 2024.

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HundrED's Spotlight of the most effective Wellbeing in Schools programmes, 2024.

Product details:

Instead of Reducing Stress, Use Stress to Your Advantage!
Written by: Bella Bagdi
Professional reviewers: Dr. Gabriella Dóczi-Vámos and Dr. Csilla Jeszenszky Language editors: Dr. Nóra Fűz and Dr. Emese Szarka
Proofreading: Lilla Veres-Lukács
Illustration: Tamás Diósy, Freepik, Depositphotos, Shutterstock Cover design: Fruzsi Khor
Page design and prepress: Tamás Diósy
Number of pages: 256
Thread-sewn, flexible cover