You're Not Falling Apart. (Or Maybe You Are. Either Way, Let's Talk. Stress Awareness Month
- Ms Andrea King
- Apr 29
- 4 min read
Updated: May 18
April is Stress Awareness Month, which feels about right given the state of everything.
Here's the thing nobody tells you about stress: it's not dramatic. It's not always the big breakdown in the supermarket car park or crying at a John Lewis advert. Sometimes it's just waking up at 3am with your heart doing something suspicious, replaying a work email from six months ago. That's it. That's the whole show.
April has been Stress Awareness Month since 1992, which means we've had over three decades of collective nodding along and doing absolutely f#ck all about it. Progress is slow. The kettle, however, has never been more boiled.
"Stress isn't a personality flaw. It's your nervous system doing exactly what it was designed to do — just with a workload it was never built for."
The statistics are, frankly, grim. A March 2026 survey of 2,000 UK adults reported on by Forth with Life highlights a "shifting" stress epidemic:
Weekly Stress: Roughly 63% of Brits feel stressed at least once a week, a significant increase from just over one-third in 2018.
Daily Struggles: About 1 in 6 people (18.15%) report feeling stressed every single day. While this is a slight drop from 1 in 5 in 2024, the frequency of people being stressed 4–6 days a week is rising.
That's not a mental health crisis. That's a society having a bit of a moment.
(And yes, if you're reading this while simultaneously answering emails, half-watching something on Netflix and telling yourself you'll "wind down soon" — hi. Hello. You are part of the percentages.)
So what actually is stress?
Biologically, stress is your body's threat response doing its job. Cortisol floods in, heart rate climbs, muscles tense up. Brilliant if you're running from something with teeth. Less brilliant when the "threat" is a passive-aggressive message in the group chat or a to-do list that's somehow longer at 5pm than it was at 9am.
Chronic stress — the low-level, relentless kind — is what does the real damage. We're not designed to be in a permanent state of mild emergency. Sleep goes. Focus goes. Eventually your immune system puts in its notice and your digestion starts doing whatever the hell it wants.
(The gut-brain connection is real, by the way. Your stomach is, essentially, having the same bad day you are.)
What we avoid saying
The stuff we're not great at talking about.
There's a particular flavour of stress that comes from feeling like you can't say you're struggling. Like admitting it is some kind of moral failure. British culture is doing a lot of heavy lifting here — we have entire social rituals built around performing "fine." The "mustn't grumble." The "oh, you know, busy but good." The smile-and-nod.
It's worth saying plainly: stress that goes unacknowledged doesn't disappear. It just goes somewhere else. Usually your shoulders. Or your jaw. Or a full personality shift that takes everyone around you by surprise.
"Naming it doesn't make it worse. It just makes it something you're actually dealing with rather than quietly drowning in."
What actually helps (and what really doesn't)
Everyone's got advice. Most of it is technically correct and completely unhinged in practice. "Have you tried journalling?" Sure. Between the second job, the school run and the three hours of admin that somehow don't count as work. Cheers for that.
But some things genuinely do help, and they're not complicated: sleep (actual sleep, not doom-scrolling in the dark), movement that isn't punishment, saying no occasionally without a three-paragraph apology, and — this is the unfashionable one — talking to someone. A friend. A GP. A therapist if that's accessible to you. Humans were not built for isolation, and trying to process everything internally is exhausting.
(If therapy feels like a luxury, Mind and the Samaritans are free. The NHS talking therapies programme (IAPT) is also free and you can self-refer. You don't have to be in crisis to use it. You're allowed to just be struggling.)
Why awareness matters
Stress Awareness Month exists because awareness, annoyingly, is actually useful. Not as a substitute for structural change — because a lot of what's making people stressed is genuinely shit, and a breathing exercise won't fix a cost-of-living crisis — but because recognising what's happening in your own body and mind is where everything else starts.
You're allowed to not be fine. You're allowed to say it out loud. You might even find, when you do, that someone nearby exhales and says "oh thank god, me too."
That's not nothing. That's actually quite a lot. #bethechange
Need support? Mind: mind.org.uk · Samaritans: 116 123 (free, 24/7) · NHS Talking Therapies: https://www.nhs.uk/tests-and-treatments/talking-therapies/
I am a D&I consultant, keynote speaker, Mental Health First Aider, writer and transgender woman with 20+ years of senior corporate leadership experience. I work with businesses across all sectors to build genuinely inclusive cultures whilst also supporting transgender individuals and their families through every stage of the journey. If this piece resonated, you can find more articles on andreaking.net or book a free discovery call if you'd like to talk.
The views expressed in this article are my own and are based on personal experience and perspective. They are not intended as medical, legal or professional advice.
Further Reading - Stress Awareness Month
Medical News Today – Chronic Stress Effects. Covers symptoms like sleep issues, digestion problems and long-term health risks. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323324#symptoms
Mayo Clinic – Chronic Stress Health Risks. Explains how prolonged cortisol exposure disrupts body systems. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress/art-20046037
Actionable Tools: The Stress Management Society has released a 2026 Information Pack which includes a 30-day "challenge" calendar and guides on the connection between gut health and stress. https://www.stress.org.uk/stress-awareness-month-resources-2/
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Stress Awareness Month?
Stress Awareness Month is observed every April to encourage people to recognise stress and talk about it more openly.
Is stress always a mental health problem?
Not always, but ongoing stress can seriously affect mental and physical health if it isn't addressed.
What does chronic stress do?
It can affect sleep, focus, mood, digestion and overall wellbeing over time.
What actually helps with stress?
Sleep, movement, boundaries, and talking to someone you trust or a professional can all help.
Where can I get support?
Mind, Samaritans and NHS Talking Therapies are all options for support.
Comments