Dana Becker, a professor at Bryn Mawr college and author of One Nation Under Stress: The Trouble with Stress as an Idea, explores our various definitions of stress and how Americans have coped with stress over the years. In the past, stress was considered an infrequent event that needed to be endured. Stress helped build character and proved the worthiness of the individual. Today, stress is considered to be with us constantly, and we need to work to deal with it. Current scientific thinking touts the benefits of optimism as helpful in staving off physical ills that may be brought about by stress. Read the entire article here: Stress as Metaphor