New Study States Casper Is Highly Stressed, But Cheyenne Is Not
If you live in and around the Casper area and you think your life seems to be more stressful than the average American, you might actually be right.
A new study conducted by personal finance website, WalletHub, listed the 2022 Most & Least Stressed Cities in America and two Wyoming cities made the list. Unfortunately, each city was at opposite ends of the study.
To determine the cities where Americans cope best, WalletHub compared more than 180 cities across 40 key metrics. The data set ranges from average weekly work hours to the unemployment rate to divorce and suicide rates.
Out of those 180 cities, Cheyenne landed at the 130th overall spot, while Casper was ranked as the 52nd. The lower the number, means the higher the stress rating, so Casper is lot more stressed out overall than Cheyenne.
Here are four of the key metrics that factored into the each cities ranking and both Casper's and Cheyenne's ranking for each:
- Work Stress: Casper - 15th | Cheyenne - 113th
- Financial Stress: Casper - 43rd | Cheyenne - 93rd
- Family Stress: Casper - 155th | Cheyenne - 163rd
- Health and Safety Stress: Casper - 31st | Cheyenne -73rd
While both Wyoming cities scored very well in the family stress category, another major factor that was key in this study included divorce rate, which unfortunately, Wyoming as a whole ranks very high at.
According to the study though, not all stress is bad. WalletHub stated:
Certain kinds of stress can have positive effects on a person’s well-being, at least in the right doses. According to Psychology Today, “A little bit of stress, known as ‘acute stress,’ can be exciting—it keeps us active and alert.” When stress reaches an unmanageable level, however, it turns “chronic.” That’s when we become vulnerable to its damaging effects such as health problems and loss of productivity. By one estimate, workplace-related stress alone costs society more than $300 billion per year.
There is a definite contrast in Casper and Cheyenne's stress levels, so here's to hoping that Oil City can move closer to our capital city's levels, sooner than later.