Sustainable Stress

Adventures in Sustainable Living Podcast

Episode 140

Sustainable Stress

Many times I stand on the back deck of the cabin enjoying the unobstructed long range view of the mountains and listening to the quiet. The only thing that interrupts the quiet is the sound of the creek that is at the height of Spring run off. It is the middle of June and there is still plenty of snow above timber line which means it was a productive snow filled winter.

As I sit here I think about how Colorado has changed since moving here many years ago. 

But despite those changes I can still come home to peace and quiet. But if I venture past the locked gate that guards our privacy I am quickly reminded of how the world has moved away from sustainability to sustainable stress. Stayed tuned for E140. 

Welcome back everyone to the Adventures in Sustainable Living podcast. This is your host Patrick and this is E 140 which is called Sustainable Stress.

In my last episode The Happy Stranger, I talked a little bit about how much Colorado has changed during the time I have lived on the cabin property. I also talked about how the improvements, or so called progress, has come at a price. I have developed certain avoidance tactics by running errands or going to the supermarket at 6 in the morning to avoid the crowds. I have developed avoidance tactics because of the flood of traffic especially on the weekends. 

Fortunately we have reduced our commuting by more than 50% and we both now spend a lot more time at home. For me that has been the result of changing a lot of things about how I work and who I work for. I now have 7 to 10 day blocks of time off on a regular basis. 

I feel fortunate that despite all the growth in Colorado many things at the cabin have remained relatively unchanged. Off all the time that I’ve owed this property only 4 acres have been altered in any way. The remaining 42 acres are still in their natural state. For the first 6 or 7 years that I lived at the cabin I was the only full time resident. There are now four properties that are occupied full time. But we are spread out over 160 acres and because of the local geography and our personal schedules we only see each other every few weeks. 

The only true impact on me is that I now hear vehicle and equipment noise a couple of times a week because the new property owners across the valley are making improvements. But when you live in such a quiet place even the sound of a human voice carries for almost half a mile depending on the wind direction. 

But I can rest assured that the noise will cease once their improvements are finished. I am certain they felt the same way about me when I was building the sunroom last year. If you have ever worked with metal roofing you know there is no quiet way to make cuts for a custom fit. Hearing protection is a must. I am certain that once I fire up the metal cutting saw all the local wildlife run for their lives. 

But there are times when we are all making noise. From road improvements to stocking up on wood for the winter, we each have times when we have to interrupt the quiet. But once the work is complete, the quiet returns. Sometimes when I have a lot of work to do I will apologize to the neighbors in advance for all the noise. In the end all of us are very respectful of each other because we all live here for the same reason. It is simply a reprieve from the chaos that ensues once you venture past the gate. 

But, when I do take blocks of time off to work on projects at home eventually I have to go out into the world, run errands, or go to the supermarket. When that time comes I am almost immediately reintroduced to the very reasons people in our culture are so stressed all the time. 

Although many things at the cabin has remained relatively unchanged over the last 25 years, the entire world around me has changed significantly. All it takes to bring that to my full attention is for me to drive the 8 miles down the county road in order to reach the main highway. 

I was thinking the other day that every single time I have to run errands on a day off I am confronted with some unpleasant aspect of our culture. People drive like maniacs because they are always in such a hurry. Prime time at the supermarket is never entertaining. People are typically rude and I often hear unpleasant, angry conversations about some minor infraction from a neighbor and they are just generally unhappy with life. 

Such things tend to make me cringe because after spending several days at the cabin enjoying peace and tranquility I am reminded of how frequently the world is just not a peaceful place. Most people are constantly in a hurry. Perhaps it is because the average person has an endless list of obligations to attend to which is apparently more important than simply enjoying life or focusing on what brings you value and makes you happy. 

Once I return to the of the cabin where there is a general lack of man made noise I often think of how the world would be a less stressful place if people had a cabin to come home to every day. It often occurs to me that the more we have moved away from sustainability the more stressful the world has become. Things used to be simple. Instead of sustainability we have sustainable stress. 

In general I think people would be in a better mood, much happier and healthier if they only had a place and a means to relieve all the constant pressure and stress of our modern culture. Perhaps if people were more familiar with the detrimental effects of constant stress they would make it more of a priority to avoid it. 

Modern science and research has shown that stress can contribute to digestive problems, high blood pressure, a weakened immune system, as well as an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. 

Financial problems are the leading cause of stress for over 60% of us. Four out of five people are stressed about the cost of living and financial stress even causes physical symptoms in 61% of people surveyed. And it seems the younger generations are suffering more stress compared to older generations. In fact 55% of us say we are unable to enjoy life simply because of stress.

Considering all of this I started thinking about how things were when I was growing up on the farm in Georgia. Yes we were stressed at times because there was a lot of work to do. Yes we were stressed because sometimes we worked long days canning and processing our own food. Yes we were stressed when one of our big farm animals was sick and we depended on that animal as a food source. And yes we were stressed especially when we went fishing and it was the really big one that got away. 

At least to me at the time, life seemed very simple. Even as a teenager life seemed very simple. When I started working for my own money at the age of 12 life seemed simple. Even when I was 16 and 17 working full time and still going to high school life seemed pretty simple. Even after I moved to Colorado and was out on my own for the first time life seemed pretty simple. And now living at the cabin full time life is pretty simple. 

So why are we so stressed these days. 

A recent Gallup poll revealed that 4 in 10 adults worldwide say they experience a lot of worry and stress. One factor that has resulted in that is the recent pandemic. However, the pandemic is not entirely to blame. 

Some research suggests that the over all decline in mental health is related to feelings of an uncertain future. For example, rising inequalities between skilled and unskilled workers in a technology driven culture results in economic insecurity for many. 

Psychologist Josh Briley, a fellow at The American Institute of Stress, is not surprised at the results of surveys about stress in our culture. Dr Briley says, 

“Things are moving faster. There's so much information being thrown at us all the time. And of course, media thrives on the bad stuff. So, we are constantly being bombarded with crisis after crisis in the news, on social media, on the radio and on our podcasts. And all that is drowning out the good things that are happening.”

Other psychologist agree that being more connected via the internet means people in one country can be profoundly affected by what happens in another country. This often gives people a sense of uncertainty and insecurity, which causes a lot of stress. And of course, it was not always this way. 

All the things we hear about constantly: prices going up, gas prices going up, supply change problems, climate change and the impact that has on people, mass shootings. Some bad thing happens half way around the world and we hear about it 10 minutes later. This does nothing but give us all a sense of uncertainty and insecurity about our future. We start feeling as if it is not safe any where. 

On top of that we are constantly trying to do too much. Being constantly connected with social media so that we can compare and despair makes us think we need to manage and accomplish all things all the time. It is not really possible to always excel at work and at home. It is not always possible to travel the world and nurture your home life. We can’t be everything to everyone all the time yet that is what we try to do. 

Certainly I have an appreciation for the state of the modern world. I know this because I’ve been there. If you have been following me for sometime you know there was a time when I was buried under a crushing load of debt and worked an average of 80 hours per week. I reached a point of burn out that ultimately pushed me to literally up end my entire life. Five years later I was completely debt free and suddenly had more personal freedom than I’d ever had in my entire adult life. 

But, short of doing what I did and short of going off the grid, what can you do to manage the sustainable stress we have in our modern world. What is the best antidote? 

Learn to prioritize. 

Stop trying to be everything to everyone which only makes you feel you are being pulled in different directions all the time without any real focus, goal, or even purpose. 

One of the basic principles of simplifying your life is to make a list of the top 4 to 5 things that mean the most to you, things that make you happy, things that produce value in your life. Then, make room in your life for those top 4 to 5 things. 

Develop some healthy stress relief mechanisms 

Stress is inevitable in modern life. Everyone feels some sort of stress from time to time and you just can’t avoid it. Too often we make poor decisions about managing our stress. We drink alcohol, reach for sugar or caffeine, or eat fatty comfort foods. What we should be doing is going for a walk, do a work out, engage in some physical labor, spend some time out doors. All these things have been shown to relieve stress and will help you to be healthier. 

Disconnect from the world

This is something that I just cannot over emphasize. Simply disconnect from the constant text messages, emails, voice mail, phone calls and social media that mostly provide meaningless stimulation and brings no value in your life. 

I do remember a time in my life when a good friend of mine kept telling me I needed to have an email account. I insisted that I didn’t need one. A couple of months later he called and said, “Here is an email account I set up for you and here is the password.”  About that same time I was asking another friend of mine about something that had to do with the governor of Colorado. He stared at me in disbelief and told me to get my head out of the trees because that particular person had not been in office for over 5 years. 

I guess you could say I was the king of being disconnected. These day I would say I am a lot better about being connected but I also refuse to let it rule my life. I would advise that you do the same. I think you will find you will be a lot happier. 

Limit your time on social media

Now social media deserves some special attention. Numerous studies have revealed that too much time on social media results in more stress and causes mental health problems. If you are glued to your social media platform, then learn to limit your time or perhaps give it up altogether. 

Get organized and set up some financial goals

Financial challenges are by far the leading cause of stress for most people. You can relieve some of that stress by setting some goals. For example, focus on paying off one debt at a time. Make a goal to save a certain amount of money every month so that you have extra in the even of an emergency. Limit your spending and only purchase exactly what you need. 

Connect with people face to face

It is obvious that because of the internet we are more connected to people than ever before. In fact, we are so connected to people all over the world that we do not even know our neighbors. Furthermore, I often see groups of people sitting at a table in a restaurant and they are not even having a conversation because they are all too busy looking at their phones. 

Making a personal connection with people can be valuable. Not to mention the best time to make a friend is when you don’t need one. One of these days when you actually do need help, your aid will come from a personal friend or neighbor and not from your online friend. 

Learn to manage some of your own resources

And of course you would expect me to say that coming from a person that has lived off the grid for over 25 years. But seriously, in a time of need forethought and planning, creativity and ingenuity are going to be your best friends. 

Having extra supplies and dry goods at home, growing some of your own food, having a freezer that runs solely off of solar energy, making your own bread, home canning, keeping extra water around are all simple things to do and it will make you worry a whole lot less in case of an emergency. 

Summary

At the end of the day, it is impossible to avoid some sort of stress in our lives. If nothing else, that is a part of being responsible. But there are so many things about our modern culture that tend to put more stress on us than what is actually necessary. The problem is that most of us buy into that when we don’t have too. 

Remember that so many of the things we do are a matter of habit, it is an accepted cultural norm, or simply a matter of choice. But much of this is directly related to the stress we feel everyday. As you have likely heard me say before sustainability leads to simplicity and simplicity leads to a health life with less stress, peacefulness and a whole lot more personal freedom.  

Well folks, that is about it for this week. I hope this episode helps to lead a more fruitful and stress free life.  I hope you will join me again next week. Until then, this is your host Patrick signing off. Always remember to live sustainably because this is how we build a better future.  

Patrick