Right - or maybe not. Maybe we are redefining stress because we no longer live in caves and don't have to struggle on a daily basis to just survive.
I have found it rather difficult lately to not throttle people who constantly complain about how every little thing is stressful. One particular co-worker has been driving me bananas lately. First she starts every conversation with one loud long exasperating sigh. That's your first cue to run away before she starts to speak. If you are not so savvy and quick, you will be stuck listening to her boring tales of work-home-life issues that she is having. She also lacks the ability to know how to tell a story, so her style is to over dramatize her voice. Plus she laughs at everything when it clearly isn't funny. So every conversation with her is the awkward dance of her trying to be entertaining, witty, or seeking attention/sympathy and you trying to be polite and not bitch slap her into silence.
Here is what I want to say to her and to all of you who think your life is so stressful. NO IT'S NOT. BIG DEAL. SO WHAT. WE'VE ALL HAD THAT HAPPEN TO US. You don't have to go in great detail about what your mechanic said is wrong with your car and how much it's going to cost you. Guess what? Cars break down from time to time and need repairs. SO WHAT. I just had to take my car in 3 days ago, but I spared you the boring details. I've also had to deal with work issues, because that is our job - to find issues and deal with them. Why are you exasperated on a daily basis by this? And why do you feel the need to tell everyone about it? And then there is the worst of her boring problems - her personal life. This is where I drew the line with her and have been down right blunt with her. Don't complain about how others treat you like crap. People treat you how you allow them to treat you. You complain about a problem and won't follow other's advice - you have a problem to which there is a simple solution and yet don't implement that advice. So DON'T complain anymore because you obviously need/love the drama and attention. So I have bluntly told her this. She has at least learned this boundary from me and no longer talks about her personal issues with me. What I find funny about all this is that her husband died of cancer a year ago - so you would think life would be a little bit more in perspective for her. Cancer is stressful - all that other stuff is not.
Maybe we all need to be a little more discerning on what is really stressful and what is the everyday dance we call LIFE. If you're not running for your life from a tiger, sitting in a Russian prison work camp, or walking for miles in desert looking for water for your family - then it's all going to be okay.
