Work, money, the economy, family responsibilities, personal and family health concerns, relationships, and housing costs were the leading sources of stress cited by U.S. adults in the American Psychological Association’s Stress in America 2021 survey, which focused on stress and decision-making during the Covid-19 pandemic. Compare that with the pre-pandemic 2019 findings, where mass shootings, health care, and politics were the most prevalent sources of stress. In particular, stress over the economy, housing costs, personal safety, and discrimination spiked more dramatically in 2021 compared with previous years. The COVID Resilience Survey was conducted online in August 2021 by the Harris Poll for the APA and included 3,035 adults ages 18 and older living in the U.S.
The respondents, particularly younger adults and parents, reported day-to-day struggles that were sometimes overwhelming. That’s hardly surprising given that the pandemic has upended daily routines including even the most trivial of tasks, and it has necessitated constant personal risk assessment as Covid developments and recommendations keep changing. Among the survey findings:
- More than 60 percent of respondents said that the uncertainty of the future causes them stress, and nearly three-quarters reported stress-related headaches, changes in sleep, fatigue, and feelings of being overwhelmed.
- More than one-third overall reported more difficulty making both day-to-day decisions and major life decisions than before the pandemic. Sometimes they were so stressed about the pandemic that they couldn’t make even simple decisions such as what to eat and what to wear.
- Millennials (ages 25 to 42), parents, and Hispanic adults reported the most stress about decision-making; baby boomers (ages 57 to 75) and older people reported the least.
- Most respondents (59 percent) reported making behavior changes over the previous month as a result of stress, including avoiding social situations, eating and napping more, and procrastinating or neglecting responsibilities.
On the upside, stress levels overall were only slightly higher than in pre-pandemic years (5.0 on a scale of one to 10), and the outlook of Americans is generally optimistic, with 70 percent believing that all will be okay after the pandemic ends. Still, the survey highlighted racial disparities that continue to exist, with Hispanics on the higher end of the stress scale and Hispanics and Blacks saying they are not coping as well as non-Hispanic white adults during the pandemic.
According to Arthur C. Evans, Jr, Ph.D., the CEO of the American Psychological Association, “Americans’ optimism about the future is encouraging, but we have real mental health effects emerging from this period of prolonged stress that we have to address now. Pandemic stress is contributing to widespread mental exhaustion, negative health impacts, and unhealthy behavior changes—a pattern that will become increasingly challenging to correct the longer it persists.”
What to do: We live in turbulent times with much that’s out of our immediate control, and the pandemic has only added to our stress levels. Given that stress plays a role in so many illnesses, the survey’s findings underscore the importance of taking steps to bolster your physical and psychological health as much as you can, notably by eating a healthy diet (see “10 Steps to Take to Heart”), engaging in regular physical activity, maintaining social interactions (that don’t stress you out further and keeping Covid-19 safety protocols in mind), and getting adequate sleep. It’s also essential to seek emotional support when you need it, either from friends or family members or, if warranted, from a mental health professional. For information on how to assess your mental health state, see “A Mental Health Check.”
