Stress...

Is it me or does anyone else find the use of the word "stress" or "stressful situations" overused and or misused?

If we look in the Miriam Webster dictionary for the definition of  stress we find the following:

1: constraining force or influence: as a : a) force exerted when one body or body part presses on, pulls on, pushes against, or tends to compress or twist another body or body part; especially : the intensity of this mutual force commonly expressed in pounds per square inch b) : the deformation caused in a body by such a force c) : a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation d) : a state resulting from a stress; especially : one of bodily or mental tension resulting from factors that tend to alter an existent equilibrium e : strain, pressure


2: emphasis, weight

3: archaic : intense effort or exertion

4: intensity of utterance given to a speech sound, syllable, or word producing relative loudness

5a : relative force or prominence of sound in verse b : a syllable having relative force or prominence

Let's look at 1(c): a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation.

I think we have all used a similar saying "I'm stressed out" or "I'm really stressed"  or "that stresses me out".   So why do we allow ourselves to get to this point?  Is it really stress we are feeling or is it something else?  Exhaustion for example, if we find we are burning the candle at both ends and still find there are not enough hours in the day to do what we want to do and accomplish, we often get "stressed".  However, is this really stress or is it self imposed kaos, and as a result our bodies begin to experience the physical, mental and or chemical tension which alters our equilibrium.

We all deal with these more challenging times differently.  Some of us find more positive ways of dealing with these more challenging times by excercising, performing yoga, and/or mediation. Others tend to over eat or not eat at all.  Then there are others who tend to  increase their use of chemical drugs, alcohol or over the counter medications and prescription drugs. In other words we find other means to help us manage this more "stressful" times.

As an RN I have seen a huge variety in coping mechanisms people have used in order to manage their stress.  Some folks use self meditation to help manage pain, they have told me they try and find their "happy place". Then there are others who can't, and need other interventions to manage simple tasks.

So I ask myself, where does such a variance come from?  Why do some people have coping skills and others don't.  For some using the word "stress" would never even enter their mind, but rather they would consider it a more "challenging" time, and take it as opportunity to help themselves learn new ways to manage the stressful/challenging times.

Have we as a society become so "stressed out" that we can't manage our own challenging times?  Have we become that "stressed out" that we have forgotten how to manage our lives and challenging situations? How did we forget how to care for ourselves and become responsible for our own well being?  Maybe some of us were we never taught those managing and coping skills, or maybe some of those skills are innate?  

One thing I do know or have at least experienced is that there are many things in our lives that are out of our control and happen to us or around us that we can not do anything about, but does that constitute a reason for stress or to be stressed out?  I don't know.  What I'd like to see us all do is figure out positive ways to manage those times and take responsibility for our own well being and not blame everything on "stress".

What do you think?