Americans feeling less stressed

Marisol Bello | USA TODAY

Americans are feeling more chill these days, especially men, Baby Boomers and the elderly.

But the warm glow of relaxation isn't reaching everyone equally. Parents with children under 18, women, the poor and young adults are still feeling high levels of stress, according to a national survey released today by the American Psychological Association.

The annual survey of 3,068 adults, called Stress in America, found that overall, Americans are experiencing less stress. Using a 10-point scale where 1 is "little to no stress" and 10 is "a great deal of stress," the average stress level in 2014 went down to 4.9 from 5.1 in 2013. In 2007, the first year the survey was done, the stress level was 6.2

The end of the recession and an improving economy are most likely the reasons the country was less anxious last year, says Norman Anderson, the association's CEO.

"The top sources of stress are things related to money, work and the economy," he says.

The survey found most Americans, 72%, say they feel stressed about money at least some of the time. However, the survey found striking differences among demographic groups.

It found that adults in lower-income households, defined in the survey as households making less than $50,00 a year, were twice as likely as those in higher-income households to say they feel stressed about money all the time, 36% compared with 18%.

Parents with children under 18 and young adults are more likely than other Americans to point to finances as a major source of stress; 77% of parents and 75% of young adults say money is a significant factor. By comparison, 64% of all Americans say the same.

Women top the list for reporting high stress over money: 49% say paying for essentials such as food and clothing is a significant source of stress, compared with 38% of men who say that.

"Think about the demands placed on anyone in those groups," says Lynn Bufka, a psychologist who is an assistant executive director at the association.

She says women deal with the stress of work and home balance, especially if they are mothers, because society still considers them primary caretakers. Parents with young children face the stress of caring for them, and young adults in the Millennial generation have entered the workforce while jobs are tight and wages low.

As for low-income families, she says it is no surprise that they are more stressed constantly trying to decide what they can afford.

Ebony Shaw, one of the survey respondents, is a 21-year-old single mother of a 1-year-old girl, a teacher's aide in a suburban Detroit school and a second-year student at the University of Michigan.

She's under a lot of stress.

"I think of how when you are in the low-income group you have to figure out how to pay for the food you need, and when you are a young adult you are thinking about what to do with your life, and as a parent you are worried about all of it," she says.

She says her parents are a major source of support. She lives with them and her mother takes care of her daughter when Shaw is at school or work. She makes $300 a week, which she says is enough to buy what she needs for her baby, without the worry of rent or child care.

"I couldn't do it otherwise," she says.

Yvette Murray, 45, who also responded to the survey, feels some of the same stress. She attends college part time, works full time as a grant writer, raises her two children and manages a household with her husband of 20 years.

She rattles off her stressors: "Balancing work and life and kids, a full-time job, being a full-time mom, extracurricular activities for the kids, soccer, dance, band, making dinner and finding time for yourself and your spouse. … And then you throw school in."

She says she manages the stress by using her time efficiently. For example, she runs errands or studies in the car when her children are in band or dance practice.

Sometimes, though, she's pushed herself a little too hard. Two years ago, she says, she put together an intense training for grant writers. By the end, she says, she wore herself so ragged her body shut down with flu-like symptoms. She slept for two days.

She says her husband, an IT consultant who works from home, helps. The couple share a Google calendar to keep up with their schedules. And she says she's gotten much better about delegating chores at home and work.

She also has yoga twice a week.

"That's helped me tremendously," she says. "I want to be around as long as I can for my kids."