
Long-term stress is the default mode of the 21st century - yorkiebar
https://thebrave.substack.com/p/11-the-thin-end-of-the-wedge
======
zuhayeer
"The very structures, processes which keep the lights on, our economies
running and our governments functioning create the conditions which remove
people from experiencing nature, the unexpected joy of boredom and developing
strong social and community bonds."

This reminded me of Maker's Schedule vs Manager's Schedule and how this is
largely a result of packing our calendars into hour to hour increments Monday
- Friday stuck in this rotisserie motion. Empty your calendar and see how you
can experience "the unexpected joy of boredom" and randomness – maybe you'll
visit the beach tomorrow and still get more done in a half day than you do in
a week.

[http://www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html](http://www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html)

~~~
arvinsim
I made the mistake of applying the hourly schedule to my personal life and
it's horrible.

I had to always update my calendar seems things never go as planned. I also
was having anxiety even in my off days since I feel that I have to "hit" the
schedules planned out in my calendar.

~~~
ChrisLTD
I’ve tried and backed off the same idea. Funny enough, I also recently read
that Cal Newport strictly advises people not to use time blocking for their
after work schedules for similar reasons.

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madaxe_again
Existential dread is like the background radiation of stress for this era -
the constant worry that the climate will change more rapidly than anticipated,
that reified systems will collapse, that unrest and chaos will spread.

Add to that the expectation of constant availability and instantaneous
response, the expectation of unmitigated success, the expectation of having a
soaring career and being a good parent and impressing your (global) peers and
presenting a flawless life in every aspect.

Add to that the faceless systemisation of processes and functions that once
had a human face (getting a loan, buying a home, screening for employment, the
passing of judgment), and the dehumanisation of human affairs.

It honestly amazes me that humans are so far, en masse, proving relatively
resilient under this relentless cudgelling, but I wonder how long it can last.
Not much longer, I fear.

~~~
WalterBright
In the last century, people were all worried about nuclear armageddon. This
was not an idle fear, see the Cuban Missile Crisis. And, of course, there were
all the global wars.

I find it strange that people think this century is uniquely stressful.

My theory, unencumbered by evidence, is parents have successfully removed all
chance of failure, injury, risk and need for effort from children, and so
children never learn to deal with adversity. Eventually, the kids are old
enough to face problems their parents can't insulate them from, and they have
no coping skills.

~~~
arethuza
"I find it strange that people think this century is uniquely stressful."

Probably because people talk about it far more than they used to - which is a
good thing. However, I also suspect social media also layers on a whole news
ways for people to get stressed.

~~~
AdmiralGinge
I find the sort of 18-25 internet culture that exists on other platforms is
full of "look at how depressed I am lol just kidding" kinds of posts. It's
like an amplifier for dragging people down, and this year social media in
general has effectively given every rabid doomer a megaphone to spout (mostly
unsourced) doom and gloom like a million funeral bells ringing constantly in
your face. No wonder rates of depression are up!

------
systemvoltage
I’ve never been satisfied with the definition of stress. My dad always said
“If things are going good, that means you’re not trying.”

How do you reconcile normal challenges and hardships in life with what is
defined as “stress”? In some ways, life without stress is boring and
uneventful. At the same time stress is a negative thing that affects your
health. It’s not clear to me what is defined as stress - I’ve read number of
medical definitions and they all sound vague and unsatisfactory.

~~~
kernel_pancake
Can’t one define ‘useful’ and ‘useless’ stress? For example, stress
experienced when learning something challenging would be useful stress, while
ruminating about issues we have no control over would be useless stress.

~~~
function_seven
I’ll give it a shot.

Useful stress is something you can relieve through action. You study and learn
the thing, and pass the test. Or you have that difficult conversation. Once
you go through it, you feel a sense of pride and accomplishment (sorry).

Useless stress is what you feel when you’ve think you’re going to lose your
job, or a loved one is sick, or a brush fire is burning a mile away from your
house. It’s out of your control and the stress you’re under can’t be harnessed
in a useful way. It just sucks.

~~~
t0mbstone
I like this clarification.

If you work out for half an hour and then get off the treadmill, you feel
great and accomplished. This is a manageable amount of stress.

But for comparison, imagine if you have to run on that treadmill day after day
after day, only getting off for regimented breaks and the bare minimum amount
of rest required, and you are only allowed two weeks of vacation a year and
then it's back to the treadmill. And if you ever stop running on the
treadmill, you lose your house and ability to feed yourself and provide care
for your family... It gradually wears your soul down to a nub.

~~~
TeMPOraL
> _And if you ever stop running on the treadmill, you lose your house and
> ability to feed yourself and provide care for your family..._

Not to mention: if, in a moment of weakness, you slow down on a treadmill,
braking braces on your legs kick in and start giving resistance, making
running harder. Thus any kind of slack or mishap becomes a permanent handicap.

------
carterklein13
Is it the default mode of the 21st century, or is the 21st century just the
first century we've done extensive research into stress psychology (or at
least, extensive research not for the sake of confirming a narrative/bias)?

------
Zenst
There is physical and emotional stress, the levels of physical stress upon the
body has in this century become less so due to automation and working
conditions/standards. Though whilst we have reduced physical stress, we have
offset that with emotional stress. One which for some they manage to reduce
via going to the gym, exercising and other forms of physical stress.

------
gadders
I would have thought that stress levels would be worse in the - say - 18th
Century - widespread disease risk, no pain relief for surgery, realistic
prospect of starvation, wars etc etc. Or perhaps people had a more fatalistic
attitude?

Yes, you have long term stress in the 21st century, but for those of us lucky
enough to live in the 1st World, it's not usually existential stress.

------
cafard
Ah, the good old 20th Century. Two massively destructive world wars. Perfectly
awful working conditions for those in heavy industry for at least the first
third. Appalling conditions in Russia and China for a great deal of it.
Famines and mass dislocations in the Indian subcontinent.

~~~
finnthehuman
It's possible the subjective experience could be harder for those living now,
even as the objective one has gotten better.

Society doesn't teach coping well; and while it's still rare there are growing
segments that actively disparage the idea of coping when the stressor is
something they want "fixed."

Furthermore most media and advertising rely on stirring up disquiet to grow
their audience.

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scottlocklin
Yeah, no. While it's true that modern upper middle class anglosphere urbanites
torture themselves with completely optional neurotic bullshit, most of the
rest of the world is pretty relaxed and may even experience a higher standard
of living.

~~~
abnercoimbre
I have family members who benefit from my financial support thanks to my
_being_ a tortured neurotic modern urbanite. I won't get any of the "big
bucks" in the US if I unplug or relax too much, now will I?

~~~
scottlocklin
If you think checking in on your phone 200 times a day and worrying about
everything your ipotato tells you to worry about is helping feed your family:
whatever works for you, pal. That sort of mentality never worked for me.

------
mg
I wonder if that is only the case for the 21st century.

Buddhists have been looking at how to live an awesome life for thousands of
years now.

And the main theme they have been tackling right from the start was how to not
worry and reach calmness of the mind.

------
LatteLazy
We support ever more people not working. That means workers have to work
harder for a smaller share. So workers suffer long term stress. So more of
them drop out of work and the problem gets worse...

~~~
prower
\- If people are overworked and the employer can get away by burning out every
employee, then the unions are not doing their job properly.

\- If less people are required to do the same amount of work, it means you're
automating sucessfully, and that you should tax automation to compensate.
Having an automated robot/script working 24/7 shouldn't relieve the company
from its inherent social responsibilities.

\- If the above is not happening, the people in charge are failing their job
or acting in bad faith, and should be replaced and held responsible in either
case.

~~~
LatteLazy
You look at this like a bug to be fixed. But it's actually a feature. If
you're not a (would be) worker, and most people aren't (let alone the groups
our political system empowers) then the harder those workers work and the less
they're paid and the more they're afraid they'll lose their jobs the better!

50 years of rising income taxes, higher student fees, reduced job security,
union decline, reduced services for working people etc etc etc are the other
side of the coin to rising asset prices and ever higher subsidies for land
owners.

