Overall, Americans seem to be doing fairly well — average
stress levels are trending downward (4.9 in 2014 vs. 6.2
in 2007 on a 10-point scale, where 1 is “little or no stress”
and 10 is “a great deal of stress”) and people generally
say they are in good health (80 percent say their health is
excellent, very good or good). But it seems that parents,
younger generations and those living in lower-income
households (making less than $50,000 per year) have a
different experience — they report higher levels of stress
than Americans overall, especially when it comes to money,
and those who have particularly high stress about money
are more likely to say they engage in unhealthy behaviors
to manage their stress.3,4 Women, who consistently report
high levels of overall stress and unhealthy behaviors to
manage stress, also report high levels of stress about money.
What’s more, the gap between the percentage of those who
appear to be doing well when it comes to managing their
stress and the percentage of those who are not is growing.5