To unpack this problem is a matter partly of mental health and partly of physical health.
Its the stress that can both cause medical conditions and trigger and exacerbate flare-ups from existing conditions.
Because we’re not taking care of ourselves right now.
Key takeaways:
Stress on steroids.
Thats how life feels for many Americans today.
Consider senseless shootings, a nasty political climate, catastrophic weather, increasingsuiciderates.
No wonder we feel overloaded, overwhelmed, out of control, and unsafe.
Stress in the modern world is a constant.
Chronic stress zaps brainpower by damaging neural pathways and skewing judgment.
It compromises the immune system.
It taxes the heart, kidneys, liver, and brain.
Maybe its time for everyone to get on the same page when it comes to stress.
Women were more likely than men to report financial stress.
Comparing respondents by generation, Gen Xers ages 38 to 53 reported being the most stressed out financially.
Why are so many of us haunted by our finances?
Holland urges us to remember: You dont have to be wealthy to achieve financial well-being.
Stress on Steroids: Our Lives Today
How Do You Cope With Stress?
Sixty-five percent of women and 49 percent of men said they put their needs last.
How could that possibly count as a stressor?
But the reality is that many studies have shown caregivers to be at heightened risk of chronic stress-induced conditions.
Many family caregivers have had to alter their work schedules because of caregiving obligations.
Some have lost their jobs trying to juggle both.
Caregiver stress, Shrager says, is a public health issue requiring serious intervention.
Its like massage for the brain.
It initiates therelaxation response, shifting brain chemistry toward positivity, creativity, and collaboration.
Social Isolation Is Killing Us
We are not alone.
But we are lonely.
Some 60 to 67 percent of young adults surveyed say they check social media at least daily.
Among older adults, the figure hovers around 53 percent.
Whats the big deal?
Toxic stress means that you dont have enough control over your life, Dr. McEwen explains.
By contrast, 35 percent of men say they dont see friends.
Women are stressing out on the job because of structural inequities in the workplace.
Theyre stressing out at home over relationships and family responsibilities.
They dont have, or dont think they have, the time or energy.
But friends are the elixir that would make women feel less stressed out.
Connected but Alone: What Toll Does Loneliness Take on Our Health?
Without it, our body shifts to a physiological state where we support defensive strategies, not pro-social ones.
These defensive strategies are the kind experienced with prolonged chronic stress.
That doesnt have to happen, he says, if we listen to our body and respect its needs.
Health conditions, as we know, are themselves stressful.
How could this population face all that and yet seem to be the least stressed out of all?
Of course, the interplay between chronic stress and race-ethnicity is complicated.
This tyranny of silence led the actress Taraji P. Henson to found theBoris Lawrence Henson Foundation.
What are some of the sources of this kind of resiliency among black Americans?
Aspirations or expectations may also matter.
Not all minority or marginalized groups possess supportive resources.
Dr. Geronimuss weathering theory addresses both the corrosive and the strength-building aspects of adversity in marginalized groups.
LGBTQ individuals have to find or build community on their own, she says.
To resolve these issues, Assari says, society must change how it treats minorities.
Says Geronimus: When facing chronic, toxic stressors, resilience alone is not a panacea.
Resilience requires physiological coping and comes at a disproportionate cost to health for individuals in marginalized communities.
(We compared the simple binary of heterosexual and non-heterosexual populations because of sample sizes.)
We dont just need an individual approach to reduce that stress, Watson says.
This group goes out!
Our experts agree that should make for a more mellow generational profile.
Theyre not taking downtime to focus on building relationships, she says.
And that makes for people who arent alone but are lonely.
The evidence suggests that they often are.
These mechanisms are meant to prepare the bodys systems and organs for a real or perceived threat.
But stress particularly in a heightened, prolonged state can have serious, adverse health effects.
Here are some of the ways that acute or chronic stress can affect different parts of the body.
Chronic Conditions?
But the stress levels for each factor are more pronounced, and worse.
Its as if a psychological immune system kicks in, Dr. Sood says.
As people settle into treatment routines and living routines, they figure out how to navigate the environment.
We all learn to value lifes basics, such as financial or job stability, in their absence.
It becomes an insidious feedback loop, Sood says.
The salt sets it aflame and the feedback loop starts again.
Can Stress Cause Other Issues?
Americans Lack Stress Management Skills
Stress management skills?
Our experts say thats a shame, because its not difficult to learn powerfulstress management skills.
But we did include the choices meditate or exercise/sports, both of which are familiar, proven stress relievers.
In our survey, relatively few people in any generation saw them that way.
Sliced by generation, it doesnt look much better.
Our Gen Zers use it as a top de-stressor even less, with only 2 percent turning to it.
Some 7 percent of baby boomers (werent they supposed to have been the hippies?)
And frankly, most everyone you talk to knows that exercise is a good thing, says Epstein.
Epstein says its because exercise is hard, especially when you havent really done it before.
Frank H. Farley, PhD, the L.H.
For example, are you risk-seeking or risk-averse?
You need motivation that is, you have to want to do something to change the situation.
And you need the resources to take effective action.
Heres what concerns us: When asked, What do you do in response to stress?
Mininni, the health psychologist in learning and development at UCLA, asks: What does that mean?
So, what do they do when theyre stressed?
Most men still dont cry certainly not as much as women do (0.4 percent versus 4 percent).
These kinds of gender limitations hurt everyone.
Stress is a little like an avalanche," Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser says.
“It starts at the top of the mountain when something breaks off.
That should prompt us to take stock and think about how to take care of ourselves, she says.
So take time out to be with those you like and love or want to know.
Spend time with people who make you feel seen and heard and safe.
Were talking about taking a moment to exchange pleasantries with the person who makes your morning coffee.
Take a break from Netflix to sit outside and actually chat with your neighbors.
Grab some chalk and make a hopscotch board or a tic-tac-toe with your child or grandchild.
Plant an herb garden with your partner even if the garden is a small plastic tub.
Invite a friend over for tea on a Saturday instead of running another errand.
Stay for the socializing after religious services.
Waiting outside a room for a meeting to start?
Put the phone down, step away from social media, and step into your life.
Your mind, body, and soul and everyone else you encounter will be so very glad you did.
