stress is the new black

– look at those lazy people, de-stressed on the beach. How dare they!

Stress is so hot right now. Did you know Americans have willingly accepted stress as an innate part of daily life? According to USAToday, stress is the new shadow of America, literally – it stalks us every hour, every minute, and every second of each day, seen as normative, as a new criteria for being human. If we are not stressed, are we not fulfilling the standards of modern day society?

This begs a painstaking question we must ponder – has the current pace of life placed a blindfold over us, forcing us to see life as something which mustn’t include the tiniest speck of relaxation, or else we must be a lazy, piece of nothingness?

Hmm…so we are soiled with the stigma of laziness if we don’t force ourselves to work, chained to a cubicle all day, yet that cubicle does not allow us to get off of our sorry bottoms all day?

So one could plausibly deduce that the definition of productivity is sitting hunched over in a chair all day, losing muscle mass, diminishing bone density, lowering your metabolic rate, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera, whilst the definition of laziness would be taking time for ones’s self to go for a mid-day run, taking the time to cook a nutritious meal, and taking the time to read a book for leisure.

Have we reversed our vocabulary when it comes to our health and wellness? Perhaps we should consider consulting Merriam-Webster. Yet, the dictionary also now proudly recognizes sexting and gaydar, as legitimate, respected words of the English language.. So who is so tyranically defining what health means to this nation? It seems we must redefine health, happiness and success, to redefine our lives.

A lesson in stress, health, and happiness to come…

Stay tuned.