Is City Life More Stressful?

A recently published study says that city life is likely to be more stressful than rural areas:

NEW YORK – This may come as no surprise to residents of New York City and other big urban centers: Living there can be bad for your mental health.

Now researchers have found a possible reason why. Imaging scans show that in city dwellers or people who grew up in urban areas, certain areas of the brain react more vigorously to stress. That may help explain how city life can boost the risks of schizophrenia and other mental disorders, researchers said.

Previous research has found that growing up in a big city raises the risk of schizophrenia. And there’s some evidence that city dwellers are at heightened risk for mood and anxiety disorders, although the evidence is mixed.

I was in New York City today. And I have to say, I was stressed. There are people everywhere, some of them great, some of them loud, inconsiderate, or crazy. You are crammed on a subway, crammed on a train, crammed on a sidewalk. There are more things to do, but there are more people who want to do those things.

This was not at rush hour–it was in the middle of the day. I can see the anxiety and stress that living in a large metropolitan area breeds. However, I certainly do see the benefits of that life, and maybe the stress is worth the excitement. There is probably more exciting leisure activities in New York than there is in a town of 77 people. So I agree with the stress–doing things causes stress. However, whether or not it is a bad thing and a necessary evil is another question, and one I can’t definitively answer.