Peter Hanson was born in Vancouver, B.C. His aptitudes as a public speaker surfaced early; he was performing regular comedy monologues on live television by the age of 14. But his career had serious objectives, and he graduated from the University of Toronto Medical School at the age of 24. He worked for three years as an Emergency Room physician, before opening his family practice. He delivered over a thousand babies, made over 5,000 house calls, and saw the effects of stress on all his patients, from pediatrics to geriatrics.
While most of his patients blamed stress for their medical and personal problems, he was inspired by the few who had the same stress levels, but with opposite outcomes. These people had demanding stresses at work and sometimes tragic stresses in their personal lives. But, with a different set of choices than their peers, were able to prosper at work, and live long, healthy lives. It was from these patients that he realized that good health did not depend on an individual’s quantity of stress, but rather on the quality of choices being made. This formed the basis for his international bestseller, “The Joy of Stress”.
He put his entrepreneurial theories to the test by mortgaging his house to self-publish. After many stressful challenges to break into the mainstream, his book soon became Canada’s number one bestseller for over a year. The Joy of Stress has now been translated into twenty languages, and Dr. Hanson has delivered entertaining keynote speeches to hundreds of corporations on three continents. During that time he also served as a team doctor for the Denver Broncos, and the NHL’s LA Kings and Colorado Avalanche.
Peter currently lives in Whistler, BC, where he specializes in sports medicine and family practice. He has completely rewritten “The Joy of Stress”, based on the realities of his athletic patients at the base of the Olympic mountain. The book is available on Amazon.com in both paper and e-book formats. He also co-founded a successful website, and writes regular blogs and video spots, all based on the latest stresses and medical questions from his patients.
