One-third of Americans extremely stressed

28 October, 2007

One-third of Americans are living with extreme stress. Nearly half of them believe stress is damaging their health, their relationships, and work productivity, and that it has got worse in the last 5 years.

According to a new national survey by the American Psychological Association (APA), three quarters of Americans (compared with 60% in 2006) said money and work caused them the most stress.

Half of those surveyed mentioned housing costs such as rent and mortgage as a big factor. This, the APA suggests, is linked to the housing crisis in the United States.

Nearly 50% of Americans was of the view of that stress had a negative effect on personal and working life. About one-third said stress made it difficult to manage the responsibilities of work and family.

While one quarter of Americans said that stress alienated them from a friend or family member, 8% linked it to divorce or separation.

Dr Russ Newman, psychologist and executive director for professional practice at the American Psychological Association, said: “Stress in America continues to escalate and is affecting every aspect of people's lives – from work to personal relationships to sleep patterns and eating habits, as well as their health. We know that stress is a fact of life and some stress can have a positive impact, however, the high stress levels that many Americans report experiencing can have long-term health consequences, ranging from fatigue to obesity and heart disease.”

The online survey Stress in America is a part of the American Psychological Association’s Mind/Body Health Public Education Campaign. The survey, which involved 1,848 adults, was carried out in September 2007.

The survey results were adjusted for age, sex, race and ethnicity, education, region, and household income to make them representative of the overall American adult population.

Participants were asked questions that distinguished between appropriate and excessive levels of stress, assessed attitude and perceptions, the leading sources of stress, what people did to manage it and what resources they used, and the impact it had on their personal and working lives.

The key results of the survey are:

• 28 per cent of Americans said they were managing stress extremely well.
• Over 70% reported recently having physical and psychological symptoms of stress.
• Physical symptoms included fatigue (51%), headache (44%), upset stomach (34%), muscle tension (30%) and others.
• Psychological symptoms included feeling angry or irritable (50%), feeling nervous (45%), lacking energy (45%), feeling tearful (35%).
• Nearly half of Americans said stress caused them to lay awake at night.
• 43% of Americans said they were overeating or eating unhealthily as a way to manage stress.
• 36% said they had skipped a meal in the last month because of stress.
• Drinkers (39%) and smokers (19%) said they drank or smoked more when highly stressed.
• 43% said they watched TV more than 2 hours a day, and 39% said they played video games or surfed the internet.
• A good number of Americans also mentioned healthy ways to manage stress, including listening to music (54%), reading (52%), exercising or walking (50%), being with family and friends (40%), and praying (34%).

The survey also asked participants about their motivation to change lifestyle or behavior to reduce stress or manage it more effectively.

In all, 35% said they would make changes if diagnosed with a chronic condition. The main motivator for change, 60% of the respondents mentioned, would be to feel better. And, 38% said they would be motivated to make changes if they received encouragement from a spouse or partner.