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How could humans possibly be more stressed now than at any other time in history? As someone pointed out, life expectancies have dramatically improved, we have all kinds of safety nets in place to cover practically any circumstance and we're not at war. You honestly think it wasn't stressful during the great depression? How about WW1 and WW2? What do we have to be stressed about that remotely compares to those times?
2.5 million years, that's a long time, and to think that we would actually know the living conditions of tribal men seems a bit far fetched. Modern day humans emerged approx. 200,000 years ago, and even at that juncture they probably were less "stressed" simply because stress as experienced by humans often relates to a state of mind that sees no resolution prospects to the problem at hand. The "fight or flight" decision that we are hardwired to act upon when faced with scenarios that appear dangerous doesn't work in the modern living condition. At the office we can do neither (F-or-F) when the boss is in our face, or when we can't shelter ourselves because we don't know how to sustain life in the natural environs, or worse yet we feel the stress of living in an uncertain political/economic world not of our making.
Much has been written about these kinds of modern day living problems that ancient man wasn't confronted with, and considering whether man's life was easier in no way equates with the asking about his stress levels. In my view man has come a long way toward making things easier, technology has been a boon in this way, but, stress is one of those things that may have been elevated in this process of making life easier. It's one of those baffling aspects of life that cause us to ponder whether we may be missing the point of living in a techno society, and that would be the question of whether we CAN do something that causes us less stress by living at a level of lower material consumption.
2.5 million years, that's a long time, and to think that we would actually know the living conditions of tribal men seems a bit far fetched. Modern day humans emerged approx. 200,000 years ago, and even at that juncture they probably were less "stressed" simply because stress as experienced by humans often relates to a state of mind that sees no resolution prospects to the problem at hand. The "fight or flight" decision that we are hardwired to act upon when faced with scenarios that appear dangerous doesn't work in the modern living condition. At the office we can do neither (F-or-F) when the boss is in our face, or when we can't shelter ourselves because we don't know how to sustain life in the natural environs, or worse yet we feel the stress of living in an uncertain political/economic world not of our making.
Much has been written about these kinds of modern day living problems that ancient man wasn't confronted with, and considering whether man's life was easier in no way equates with the asking about his stress levels. In my view man has come a long way toward making things easier, technology has been a boon in this way, but, stress is one of those things that may have been elevated in this process of making life easier. It's one of those baffling aspects of life that cause us to ponder whether we may be missing the point of living in a techno society, and that would be the question of whether we CAN do something that causes us less stress by living at a level of lower material consumption.
Good post-well said. I think we have become more disconnected from the Earth and World at large-some of these technological advances have made life physically easier but perhaps more stressful and alienating.
More stressed out for the fact they now understand the unhappy feelings they have are due to stress. In the past, they were too busy running away from vicious animals and gathering food that they never had a moment to think whether they were stressed.
Stressed out?
Don't worry,we have a pill for that.
Overweight?
Don't worry,we have a pill for that.
Paranoid?
Don't worry,we have a pill for that.
There is magic in those little plastic bottles containing experimental drugs made from drywall.
I guess being pursued by a saber-toothed tiger was pretty stressful.
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