Levels of stress, anxiety, worry, sadness and anger among women worldwide are at a 10-year high, according to a new report.
In one of the largest studies on women’s well-being, analytics firm Gallup and medical tech company Hologic, Inc. teamed up to survey over 66,000 women in 122 countries around the world.
Study authors found 43% of respondents said they experienced worry in 2021, 41% reported feeling stress, 32% reported feeling sadness, and 26% reported feeling anger.*
Can you relate to the results of that study? Do you find your levels of stress have increased over the past couple of years and if so, do you find your levels of worry have also increased? An increase of stress or worry certainly increases your chances of feeling sad or angry. These feelings can manifest into depression, rage and even physical ailments.
What’s a woman (or person) to do?
There is a possibility we may be feeling the effects of social and political divisiveness within our country, the hardship of the cost of inflation, or the fear of becoming ill. Many are being tested every day. Can you actually put your finger on the pulse of your stress or worry? Have you succumbed to the current amorphous climate of overwhelm?
If you have, you may want to pick yourself up, brush yourself off and get in touch with your strength. You are stronger and far more equipped to handle the pressures of our current state of affairs, the nay-sayers and negativity swirling about. You are more capable of holding your ground and moving through this challenging period of uncertainty and unrest than you may realize.
There are many steps available for you to take. The first and foremost step is to “cross that bridge when you come to it.”
Following this time tested adage helped my dad, Woody, to live a relatively stress-free life. He often reminded me of the value of approaching each day this way. As I continue to grow older and wiser I have come to better appreciate these words of wisdom.
Many worry over issues that may never come to fruition. Anticipating what could go wrong and worrying about it can be powerfully detrimental to your well-being. It can stop you in your tracks and prevent you from moving forward.
I recommend you reflect back over the years to a space in time where you anticipated the worst possible outcome. Perhaps you worried about it, were unable to sleep, and became stressed out to the point of feeling depressed, only to have your worst fears never realized. The issue which caused you to worry never even materialized. All this angst was for naught. You subjected yourself to needless stress and worry because you crossed the proverbial bridge needlessly. You were never able to recoup that time.
Reflection is a gift you bestow upon yourself. The beauty of reflection is you can learn from it. Will you choose to get ahead of yourself and create chaos, worry and stress, or will you choose to remain in the moment, expect the best possible outcome while preparing for the worst, and cross the bridge when and if you come to it?
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