We are living through a very difficult time and things don't look to be getting any easier. Sometimes life can seem terribly painful and unfair, yet somehow we manage to struggle on, day after day, hoping and praying that things will soon get better.
The world is slowly becoming a more stressful and uncertain place to live. Nothing seems safe anymore. Peoples debt levels are at record highs. There are many people who are losing their jobs and their homes, which in turn effects their physical and mental health. Worry, depression and anxiety seem to have become a way of life for way too many people.
We seem to have entered the Age of Anxiety.This topic was portrayed on the cover of Time Magazine in 2002 and was the featured story in that issue. The constant stress and uncertainties of living in the 21st century have certainly taken their toll, and as a result many of us seem to live a life of constant fear and worry.
When the terrorist attacks happened on September 11, this constant stress and worry seemed to just be magnified. The fear that something of this magnitude happening again still exists today.
Turn on the news or open up a newspaper and we are bombarded with disturbing images and stories. We begin to wonder if we are safe anywhere. In this, the information age, never before have we had so much access to so much data.
The economy is another stressor.Our country is riddled in debt along with its citizens.Rising gas prices, housing costs, property values, even the food costs has caused many Americans to accept jobs that are not satisfying or are overly tedious. They work these jobs because they need a paycheck. Today, it’s more important to bring home the bacon rather than work in a dream career.
Having more women in the workplace adds to the stress.Women typically feel the need to be everything to everyone, they are a bread winner, house keeper, mom, and wife. The only problem with that is some women just don’t make any time for themselves thus contributing to their stress levels being at an all-time high.
Cell phones, internet, palm pilots, blackberries, i-pods – we are always on the go and always reachable. We don’t make time to relax and enjoy life any more. Why not? We certainly should!
Stress is a ‘normal’ function of everyday life. Only when it appears to take over our lives does it then become a problem. Everyone will have different reasons why a situation causes them pressure. As a rule it’s usually when we don’t feel in control of a situation, then we feel its grip tightening around us causing us to feel worried or ‘stressed’.
If stress is caused by us not feeling in control of a situation, the answer is to try and reverse this, and regain that control. The good news is: YOU CAN!
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