Chronic Stress is Making Us Sick

I learned the hard way that we are not designed to live this way

This essay is adapted from a piece that was originally published in December 2023. I’m resharing for the many new subscribers who have joined since then.

Americans suffer from chronic illness in a way that is unique among industrialized nations.

The insane levels of stress we live with is a major factor in this.

A year-long Washington Post examination sounded the alarm in An Epidemic of Chronic Illness Is Killing Us Too Soon, noting that while the US once had a similiar life expecancy as it’s peer countries, “chronic ailments are the primary reason American life expectancy [is now] poor compared with other nations.”

In a recent report, Stress in America 2023, the American Psychological Association found that among those aged 35-44, nearly 60% reported they suffered from a chronic illness, and 45% percent said they had received a mental health diagnosis. Adults ages 18 to 34 reported the highest rate of mental illnesses at 50%.

When I was younger, the idea that I could burn out or come d…