ICM Blog Post Module 4 Post 1 | Stressors and how it can affect outlooks and attitudes

One of the biggest things that follows me around in life is stress. It can come in the form of many things, such as making sure my credit card bill is paid, remembering to get days off work, heated encounters, etc. It’s never a fun thing to deal with, and I can only imagine what someone who deals with that kind of stress, but much more intensified.

I grew up in a loving four person household with my mom, dad and older sister. We weren’t rich by any means, but we were comfortable enough, not fighting to get by.

Chapter 10 of Johann Hari’s “Stolen Focus” dives deeper into some things that stress can trigger. Hari introduces Nadine Burke Harris, former surgeon general of California. She had dealt with severe stress and anxiety all the time growing up, as well as through her work. She encountered a lot of folks who were struggling to get by and realized a correlation — those who are always stressed, whether it be a tight financial situation, spousal issues, etc., are always on edge, or on the lookout for someone or something.

These people are so used to being afraid and disturbed by things that they are always looking and planning for the next thing that is going to bring them down before it even appears. I can relate to these feelings in a lot of personal ways, but as I stated, I’ve (fortunately) never been to the point where I was wondering where my next meal would come from or anything like that. 

I think that this is important because we need to make sure that we realize everyone is human and everyone is different. We all react to events, traumas, situations differently. 

Additionally, Harris pointed towards a common theme: most people she had encountered just needed to feel safety/comfortability in order to focus on tasks. 

This is something that I can relate to heavily, as I’ve faced my own share of internal thoughts on how people view me for how I’ve navigated my college career. Harris also listed that a lot of people who showed these traits exhibit ADHD, which is something I’ve been diagnosed with.