To think humans take life way too seriously.

[purpledreamsicle]

I'm a laid back person by nature but all around me I see stress and worry about things that will usually resolve in time.
I see people getting upset about things that aren't going to matter in the morning or worrying about things that might happen but probably won't.
I don't understand why people take everything so seriously when life is so short and in the end none of it will matter anymore.
Is life really meant to be full of problems and worry?
Is there anything wrong with just living more relaxed and care free? I feel like it's made out to be an irresponsible trait.
Is there really anything wrong with not worrying about what other people think or what others might say, I just don't get it, it seems like we're all out to make each others lives as difficult as possible because we hate anyone who isn't suffering as though they're not living in their idea of a stressful real world.

Believe me the day you wake up and get the news that threatens your whole family , you will take it seriously .

I agree OP, I've been first on scene to two devastating road accidents and that put life in perspective for me.

We are a bunch of electrons zooming around the universe, half the stuff we are told to worry about is so unimportant, obviously you have to have the basics shelter, food, safety, education etc and health worries can be very concerning and future planing and paying into a pension and having some savings is sensible. But the materialistic Ness, chasing the next bigger and better 'thing', having to work harder to pay for that stuff, getting in debt then worrying about the debt, instead of enjoying the now and what you have and what is achievable and tangible for you.

The interconnectedness of the world is both great and also awful at the same time, being flooded with negative things all the time or the perceived success both material and otherwise of others online, the stress of FOMO.

I made the decision during COVID to stop following all news outlets on my phone and to only watch the news once a day so I know what's going on in the world. That changed my level of stress alot whereas my dad sits and has the news on all day on repeat and just gets this continuous input of awfulness.

@bluetopazlove but I don't think OP is talking about big and justified worries like a cancer diagnosis or being evicted, or leaving a war torn country.

It's the low level worries that seems to be causing massive stress in people, stuff that in the past people would never worry about because they were too busy doing other physical things and we're too tired to worry about, or had very legitimate worries like where the next meal is coming from.

There's that phrase "God makes work for idle hands" and I think it's true that "Stress makes work for idle minds". Anxiety you said the wrong thing at the school drop off, worry that your car is 5 years old, concern over the fact your eyebrows aren't the current shape etc etc

I think the minutiae of life has always been a human concern, just look at stuff like Jane austen

But what worries are worthy of your worry? Ds was born blue, he nearly died. Our worry level for 18 months was through the roof. The trauma of that meant the early months of my subsequent twin pregnancy were hard. Am I pathetic for worrying if my child would live or how disabled he would be? Or is that allowed? Am I pathetic for then worrying about the risks of having identical twins? Am I allowed to worry about how we earn enough to give them all the basics? Can I worry about providing more than just the basics? Can I worry about the culture at DHs work which could see his boss just decide to get rid of him, given that I can't stop it but we'd also be screwed? I think it's part of healthy human nature to work about those we love, and about ourselves. Otherwise you just completely blasé about everything and who cares who lives or dies?

I agree with you, but to be fair I think that life is a LOT easier if you don't have kids (unless you are super wealthy and can have children without the gruntwork of looking after them) I am a stressball in some ways but in other ways I'm pretty chill. I certainly don't agree with all the Mumsnet doom and gloom threads. That said, I would probably have a different perspective if I had all the stress that seems to be associated with childrearing. The way people on here describe parenting make it sound like a life sentence and a most unrewarding ordeal. I was childfree anyway, but if I'd been more 50/50 reading threads on here would have tipped the balance in that direction.

I'm not going to use cliches like you don't know you're born but as an older lady I could tell you that people worry far less these days than they used to.

That does sound very privileged to me. I worry a lot about money, about having enough to pay all my bills, heat my home, have food in the cupboards. As someone who has not had these things I can assure you the less I had did not make me want less.

After a late-ish pregnancy loss I worried terribly during my subsequent pregnancies. Many people have been given reason to worry, it hasn't just come out of nowhere.

Also how would you advise people to worry less? I want to say I wish I could wander around ignorant and never worrying but honestly I'm not sure I do want that, the worrying at least prepares me with a vague plan of how to tackle these concerns should they crop up.

Well that's because you are laid back and some people aren't.

Life isn't always easy and everyone reacts differently

Wait ... Are you an alien 👽

Worrying about things isn't a binary Yes/No option as the OP appears to think and the gravity of what people worry about has to be put into context. For example not caring what people think of you would go down like a lead balloon if you were being rude and dismissive towards work colleagues or customers.

What is one person's "just chill as nothing will change" attitude to an event/experience can just as well be the cause of another's worry that provides the kick up the backside and motivates changes that decrease the chances of a repeat of a negative event.

OP, don't assume that what is good for you is good for all.

Some peoples lives are much harder than others, so when life throws them a curve ball it can end up having a much bigger impact because they have too much bad stuff to deal with already. They are overflowing with stress already before the little things hit on top.
Having said that, I do look at the animal world and think animals have got the right idea. Our pets don’t have all these worries and are much more content as a result. I watch my dog snooze on the sofa and sometimes feel irrationally jealous that he doesn’t have a care in the world. He knows his food, water, bed, toys and walks etc are all on tap. He doesn’t have to worry about buying his food or his health etc, he doesn’t care what all of the local dogs are up to, or if they have better food, are prettier, walked more etc.
I don’t like being human much.