Women are the backbone of progressive society. From keeping the home clean to giving excellent outcomes at workplace, women can do wonderful tasks. 

Still everything is not as rosy as it seems. Behind such huge success lies a big story of struggle and sacrifices, which inevitably calls for psychological stress.

No doubt, women have come a long way in terms of progress and equality. Their exposure to educational opportunities is significantly higher than it was some years ago. Women have outpaced men in several areas such as college, degree and profession. While women are more educated and more employed, the pressure of facing conflicting role is overwhelming.

According to research studies, women are experiencing more psychological stress then men. Women seem to be at high risk of developing stress due to variety of reasons.

Family responsibilities

As a main pillar of family, women need to play multiple roles. Women have a lion shared of unpaid work to do at home. They are always taking on most of the household and familial duties. And it’s not just about cooking or childcare. 

Women need to spend more time to finish household chores. They are supposed to take care of a sick or elderly family member. Sometimes, they have to be sole in-charge of valuing extended family and social life. Unexpected guest, compulsory socialization and absence of domestic help disturb the daily routine. Women find it difficult to de-stress and this leaves less time for self-care. 

Women feel pressurized with much more demand than they can handle. In such situations, stress is a natural response to excessive pressure or demands. The saddest part is at times women’s efforts are ignored and they never receive appreciation for the things they do.

In addition to this, for many women marital disagreement creates relationship issues. Sometimes rebellion teens or taking care of children with special needs is the cause of stress in women. Anxiety about children’s future, husband’s job insecurity, husband’s unhealthy habits and inter-generation problems all are significant reasons to originate stress in women.

Conflicting expectations

High professional achievements, economic condition of inflation, or desire to maintain high standard of living all are contributing to more pushes of women in a work force. Undoubtedly, this occupational mobility is giving women self-identity and financial freedom. But the story has another side too.

Heavy workload, gender discrimination, gender-based disparity in remuneration, unhealthy working conditions and hostile social interactions all are making women stressful.

At the same time, guilt of missing out on family life creates a sense of helplessness. 

Women who choose to combine marriage with career have to face conflicting situations on a daily basis. Juggling between responsibilities at home front and a stressful job hit women harder than man. Women who assumed to play both a home role (wife, mother, caregiver or home care) and a non-home role (employee) frequently experience conflict between completing role demand. Playing a dual role and inability to tolerate a whole burden often results in emotional disturbances. 

The things are pretty dire for women who are family’s main breadwinner or single mother.  

Discontinuation of education

At one side, women are progressing and braking barriers each day. At another side, millions of women are still deprived of basic education. Although education is categorized as one of the fundamental human rights, it is denied to many women around the world.

For women, early marriage and poverty are main barriers to discontinue education. Uneducated women are likely to live financially dependent life on their spouse or other family members. Even if they want to earn money, they managed to work in poorly paid jobs, or struggle to find any jobs. 

Illiterate women are hardly involved in a decision-making process at home. Uneducated women struggle to fit themselves in social situation, and often remain marginalized. This prevents them from participating in social activities in a productive and comprehensive way.

Taken together, lack of education among women reduces their self-esteem and becomes a major cause of stress.

The consequences of psychological stress in women are harmful. They may range from trouble sleeping, eating disorders, health problems to tendency for self-harm.

Whatever the problem, but hope is still there. 

There are things women and society together can do to prevent excessive stress in women. 

Rather than considering household chores as regular tasks, people must start to appreciate what women are doing for their family. Women’s choice and perspective must be looked upon. Their capabilities must not be underestimated based on gender, and they must receive equal opportunity to express themselves.

Let’s strive to create an environment where every woman feels safe, valued, and loved.

Disclaimer 

Mediclin Brain Health’s content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.