We all get stressed out during the school year – exams, papers and relationships can all contribute to this. And we all find ourselves believing that once we’re out of the school setting all of this stress will disappear. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
A recent study from the American Psychological Association reported the stress factors for men and women in the workplace. However, women overwhelmingly reported having higher stress levels than men.
According to the Huffington Post, this feeling is due to the conflict that women face between work and home. As much as we would like to think we have advanced in societal stereotypes, it seems that women are still being raised to believe that success can only come from family and not at work. And when women struggle with this idea, our stress levels begin to rise.
However, staying at home is not always an option or even a desire for some women. Since 2009, women’s salaries have contributed about 47% of household earnings, placing more stress on them.
Chelsea McKinnis, Junior in AHS, agrees that society still places pressure on women to be attentive in the home.
“We [women] are given more responsibility and expected to raise a family while simultaneously working,” said Mckinnis.
Emotional responses to stress differ between the genders. Men normally experience a “fight or flight” reaction while women take on a “tend and befriend” response by seeking comfort from loved ones.
Physical responses to stress include high blood pressure, agitation, loss of sleep, and irritability.
Too much stress is not only harmful to individuals, but companies, as well, says David Posen, a physician and author of the book “Is Work Killing You? A Doctor’s Prescription for Treating Workplace Stress.”
“Chronic stress reduces all of the things that help productivity—mental clarity, short-term memory, decision-making and moods,” Dr. Posen says.
Kay Keaney, a woman featured in the Wall Street Journal article about this survey, said that being a female manager in a male-dominated workplace took a toll on her stress levels.
“There was too much work to be done, and playing the Mommy card was bad form,” Ms. Keaney says.
The tipping point, however, was when her 2-year-old son picked up her BlackBerry one night and propelled it across the kitchen. Keaney was given a wakeup call that evening.
High-paying jobs seem to require “selling your soul,” she says. “We decided the rat race wasn’t really worth it.”
Andrew Shatté, Ph.D., researcher of resilience and stress, points out that it is almost impossible to completely eliminate stress. It is recognizing this stress and understanding how to cope with it that makes all the difference.
“Conflicts between the domains in our lives aren’t going anywhere. And stress is here to stay. The only frontier available in managing stress and finding balance is in the realm of our thoughts and beliefs.”