Introduction The notion of stress is relatively new in contemporary medicine and in the common knowledge of modern life. The concept was discovered in the late 19th century by Dr. Cannon. He observed that such feelings as pain, terror, and anger that the human brain associates with near-death experiences put a stop to some bodily processes that are simply not needed in the situation (Bickerstaff 7). Instead, stress provokes a bodily response that consists of hormone outbreak and pounding energy; such a reaction was designed to protect an organism from danger. Constant stress is believed to be certain death in the long run (Krantz, Thorn, and Kiecolt-Glase par. 2, 8). Other researchers, however, stick to the opinion that the toxicity of stress is exaggerated. They assert that it is the belief that stress is harmful that makes it really harmful (McGonigall 1-3). On the whole, practically every study ends up in overgeneralized remarks on how humanity has stepped onto the path of no return: the cities are too big, the people are too plenty, the competition is too stark, and the food is too rich in saturated fats and glucose. There certainly are some deeper reasons for people to get stressed, and the video documentary “Stress: Portrait of a Killer” and the article “A Natural Fix for A.D.H.D.” by Dr. Richard A. Friedman try to define them. Analysis As the title implies, the video documentary “Stress: Portrait of a Killer” treats the matter very seriously. The video describes stress as a continuous process of pressure in all parts of life: stress at work, the stress in dealing with personal problems, etc. As a humble argument in favor of stress, it is said that an occasional outbreak of adrenaline does much good to the human body. To the majority of the working class, however, stress is routine. The video also features a Stanford University neurobiologist Robert Sapolski who asserts that stress is natural since, originally, it is a living organism’s way to protect itself. Professor Sapolski’s controlling groups of baboons are stressed because of themselves: they fight to dominate and get more food and mates. The researcher draws a parallel between the baboons’ behavior and ours. Thus, it becomes clear that one of the reasons for humans to get stressed is the struggle for control. Still, it is not the other humans and their mates that humans crave to control. Nowadays, one considers it more important to be able to control one’s own choices, decisions, future, and life in general (“Stress: Portrait of a Killer”). The article “A Natural Fix for A.D.H.D.” informs the reader about people for whom routine is stress. Such people find life unamusing and always seek new experiences. They suffer from a lack of concentration and patience. Their search for something new often leaves them dissatisfied, and they end up taking medications (Friedman par. 1-5). However, those who have found an occupation that interests them, tend to lose the symptoms of A.D.H.D. and have a “laser-like focus” (Friedman par. 5). To define the root reasons for such behavior, Dr. Friedman refers to the past of humanity, when people made a living by hunting and gathering. In those conditions having a short attention span was an advantage (Friedman par. 14-15). Taken separately, the documentary and the article treat the subject of stress differently