A heartfelt response: Oxytocin effects on response to social stress in men and women

► This experiment tests if oxytocin uniformly enhances adaptive response to stress. ► Oxytocin stimulated a salutary cardiovascular profile during social stress. ► Gender differences emerged in affective and behavioral response to stress. ► Effects of oxytocin on stress response were unchanged when accounting for estradiol. ► Oxytocin enhances biological readiness to approach under stressful conditions.