Since the era of industrialization and modernization at the end of the 20th century, “stress” seems to have taken center stage in social media and is the most searched topic on the Internet. The number of young people committing suicide due to stress has increased alarmingly. In this paper, the reasons for this are explored and some solutions are proposed.
One of the main causes of the problem is the work pressure that affects all workers today, before they are replaced by machines. Workers in factories are forced to increase their labor productivity in line with automatic assembly lines that never feel exhausted. Although the machines in the industry improve the efficiency of production, the workers have to produce more products quickly. With the development of technology, office workers are inundated with information from various digital sources and must multitask to complete a project on time. The more complicated the work becomes, the more workers need to equip themselves with various skills. Working so long and hard can be detrimental to employees’ mental and physical health. The solution is for employers to cut working hours in half to allow employees to recover and regain physical fitness. Dubai is currently a pioneer, experimenting with three days a week.
Another problem is that many families, especially single parents, are depressed because of the obstacles in their lives. In the hectic pace of life, it is not difficult to observe that many people are struggling to balance work and family life, as well as economic problems. The financial burden becomes exponential when single parents have to raise their children without the support of their spouse. In the U.S., for example, the number of single mothers suffering from postpartum depression and even killing their baby themselves has become a serious social problem. In addition, feeling stuck in married life and being hurt in love easily leads people to fall into negative thoughts. To tackle this problem, taking time out to relax, doing light physical exercises and mindfulness meditation would be an effective way to relieve stress and anxiety and help people stay calm and untie the knots in their heart. In addition, there is growing evidence that a healthy diet, which provides the brain with important nutrients, balances our mood and helps reduce stress.
A third cause of the problem is that parents’ expectations are sometimes too high to put pressure on their children. Although all parents hope for their children’s talent and success, they force their children to achieve more than others. It would be stressful for the children to frustrate their parents. In Vietnam, there was the recent shocking death of a boy who attended a high school and threw himself from the top floor of an apartment building after a heated argument with his father. The way forward for parents may be to listen to, understand, and respect children’s wishes. Parents should also put themselves in the children’s shoes to support them and stand by them when they are disappointed.
In summary, stress has become a widespread phenomenon in many countries for reasons such as intense work over a long period of time, being stuck in life, and even parents’ expectations. This is a serious problem that negatively affects the quality of life. In my opinion, the main responsibility for solving the problem lies with parents, companies and mutual perspectives.