It's the third biggest killer after cancer and heart disease. It also may be an indirect cause of those two as well. Kris Launer offers some ideas on identifying stress and ending it Despite decades of study, stress remains one of the least understood phenomenons of our time. Yet there can be few of us who have not at some time felt our hearts racing, our palms sweating, our breath shortening, our chest tightening.
Stress is synonymous with life.
These symptoms all show that our survival mechanisms are in working order. They have been among our responses to our environment since the dawn of time. We may argue whether very simple organisms such as amoebae display stressed behavior if you put them in a hostile environment. To my mind there is little doubt that some people deliberately create stressful situations. I don't know how you cope.