i don't know, i think if a third world person was thrown into a first world environment they'd be pretty damn stressed...it's all relative

I'm not saying that people in the first world don't get stressed, or that you have to be at the extreme of stress in order to be stressed at all. I just find that it's easier to cope with stress if you take a step back and think about what's really stressing you out, and how important it is in the grand scheme of things.

then again i'm a very uptight never had a drink, never did drugs (except tobacco), go to school while working one or two jobs kind of person, relaxing's not my forte. all i got's the music, and the occasional sex and stargazing walk in the nighttime

I did the whole teetotal thing for a long time. I'm glad I started drinking though, I learned a lot about myself that way, and I'm probably a more relaxed person because of that.

Sooner or later, stress will kill us.

Hope that helps.

I bake biscuits.

[djskrimp]

Friends are a huge stress relief.

And, when they piss me off, I go alone and take pictures.

Playing guitar at 3am usually works wonders, too.

Work out
Get drunk
Get high
Play my drums
Listen to music
Go for a walk

and they don't have to be mutually exclusive

do something out of the ordinary, usually playing some basketball or going for a run works wonders.

but i mostly:

draw/paint
play games
read interesting things

Making and listening to music always helps me deal with my frustration and stress. Unfortunately I don't have very much time for making music right now. Also talking to someone about what's bothering me helps, but that person has to be someone who can really understand what I'm trying to say. I try not to talk to the same person about all my troubles because I don't want to stress them out as well. There are so few people who are actually ready to listen to someone.