Are people addicted to stress?

[Norwegian Mugabe]

From my observation, people seem to seek stress at wrok etc.

is the general public addicted to stress?
They seem to over-scheudle their lives, and the lives of their kids.

Most of the bad decisions people make seems to have it's root cause in an overstressed state, in combination with a meaningless/false worldview. Everything from processed food consumption, to TV-watching, and even casual relationships seems to come from a stressed state. Am I right? if so, what are the mechanism that pushes the masses towards stress seeking? If we can find that answer, we might be able to limit stress further in our own lives. I have a sneaking suspicion that people who were put away in kindergardens during infancy are more likley to suffer from a bad stress reward system. There could be several reasons for the link between childhood neglect and stress seeking.

[Truth]

@Norwegian-Mugabe Hi, from my experience, I suggest that stress and fun are both excitement, and that depending on our energy level, the degree of pleasantness/unpleasantness we feel from this exitation varies

Probably the majority of us are not addicted to pure stress felt as totally unpleasant, we can potentially enjoy some of the excitement derived from these activities(such as work), and/or the excitement derived from what we associate with it, such as thinking it will increase our "power", our "status", "recognition from others"

[Caray]

@Norwegian-Mugabe I'll take it's lowish grade, gnawing at the back of your head stress we're talking here. The infamous "chronic stress". Life-work-relationship situations that get out of our hands and at some point may coalesce into that pit in your stomach sensation you take everywhere you go.

That's the extreme version, not saying that most people won't ever go through it at some point in their lives. I experienced it a few years back and it's hell on earth.

Ppl confront stress by a mixture of self-soothing behaviours (food, entertainment, drugs, sleep, It can get wildly unhealthy) and controlling ones, that's the overscheduling part, which I guess (never tried It) can only be semi-effective.

For many I believe it procures a sense of meaning and struggle. If you've got no leading principles in your life, nothing (aesthetic-philosophical-spiritual-vital) you're striving towards, then for sure you're gonna crave those stress feels.