"Wish we could turn back time to the good old days
When our momma sang us to sleep but now we're stressed out."

You might recognize those lyrics from one of last year's biggest Top 40 hits--"Stressed Out" by Twenty One Pilots.  It's a sentiment many of us have felt, but would never dare express out loud; and it seems many of us are feeling it more these days.

According to a survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA) for the period of August 2016 through January 2017, stress levels in the U.S. increased for the first time in 10 years.  The survey, entitled "Stress in America: Coping with Change" found that two-thirds of Americans are stressed about the country's future, no doubt due to the current contentious political climate in which we live.  Not surprisingly Democrats are more stressed than Republicans in this aspect.  76 percent of Democrats said that the future is a "significant stress source" as opposed to 59 percent of Republicans.

Politics are not the only contributing factor to our heightened stress, however; there's also terrorism, police violence toward minorities, and personal safety.  Where you live makes a significant impact on your stress level, too.

Looks like many of us in Shreveport would like to turn back time to the good old days, because we're really stressed out.  WalletHub has just released a new report that sites Shreveport as the country's 10th Most Stressed City.

In all the municipalities in all of the good ol' USA, Shreveport ranks #1 in being stressed out about job security.  (Surprise!)  We also tend to sit on our butts a lot (yours truly being the poster child for couch potatoism) because Ratchet City ranks 12th in stress related to our low physical activity rate.

What does this mean for our health?  Well, the APA study says that in September of last year, 80 percent of survey respondents reported having at least one stress-related symptom like headaches, and feeling nervous or anxious.

So what do Shreveporters do to de-stress.  APA psychologist Vaile Wright, in an interview with US News & World Report, suggests doing something pleasurable like hanging out with friends and family, and taking care of yourself by getting plenty of rest, eating healthily, and exercising.

Cuz like my great-grandmother always said, "This too shall pass."

 

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