Is the recession making you depressed? Cranky?
 

http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_d...=5&id=413&cn=5

My sister works retail, and has noticed a sharp uptick in cranky customers. Some of that may be the season (why does Christmas bring out the worst in so many?), but I've noticed an overall decline in the moods of friends and family. Heck, come to that, I'm much grumpier than usual.

Have y'all noticed a difference in your mood or that of those around you? Do you think it's the economy? It's tough to be upbeat when you are worried about your mortgage, or your job . . . what do you think?

It could also be Seasonal Affective Disorder for those who live in the Northern Hemisphere... IDK? :confused:

There is also an uptick in violent criminal activities perpetrated by first-time offenders...

Haven't noted too much drug abuse, yet. But I suspect that will occur, too. Don't know what the drug of choice will be because most top ones folks are too afraid of getting busted--i.e. crack, crank, smack and meth or glass...

I have seen plenty of crankiness going around... Somedays I deal with it, other days, I don't even deal with it.

My crankiness is age.

I'm getting cranky and depressed from listening to my bf constantly drone on about how America is headed into a downward spiral that will be even worse than the great depression.

I wouldn't say I'm depressed... more like severely frustrated that no one is hiring so I'm stuck in this job that I have hated for years. My own company isn't even hiring or filling vacant positions either so it's not like I can just move around.

I do think that my frustration with everything has definitely affected my mood at work (that and having to deal with our idiot customers).

You are NOT old... Old is my dad who is cantankerous and has 8 cars he cannot afford to drive and wants another one... :rolleyes:

He needs an enema... Make him some Exlax-special chocolate holiday brownies... :)

Special brownies!
 

The gift that keeps on giving . . . :eek:

I'm seeing it a lot, but just about everybody I know has at least one bread earner working for one of the auto companies or a supplier and they are all feeling it. It's the talk of the day, every day, everywhere you go. It absolutely doesn't help that we're approaching the shortest day of the year and it's been really cloudy so we haven't seen much of the sun. That does affect people.

I'm cranky because my car has been in shops for over two weeks now, I'm paying for a rental in the meantime which is eating up my Christmas budget quickly. I have an appointment to test drive my Saturn Vue tomorrow though :)

I'm tired of talking about the recession/economy. I haven't personally been affected, my company hasn't been doing much in the way of layoffs, and my parents aren't impacted negatively (yes, people can be impacted positively by this sort of thing). I have a few friends who did get laid off, but they got pretty sweet severance packages and they aren't really looking for a job now.

I feel like the media drives things almost to the point of hysteria about this, and I'm so tired of it.

This is pretty much us, too, only no one we know has been laid off. We're watching our budget more closely, sure, but that's due more to the addition of another kid rather than the economy.

Not really; luckily my wife and I haven't been hit hard by it at our workplaces. I will say that the atmosphere around the law school is definitely more depressed than usual. A lot of law firms, of all sizes (from the large top tier firms to the smaller firms) have been cutting summer associate/first year associate staffing levels, so there are people who thought they had a job offer and had it pulled. So, there are a lot more 3rd years (and 4th year evening students) looking for jobs around this time of year. Usually, most people know what they're doing by October or so.

ETA: To be honest, I'm a little concerned, so I've started staying later at work and taking on more work, essentially to make myself more "valuable" to the company. It gets a bit busy with law school on top of the 50-60 hour work weeks, but if anything comes down the line I don't want to be at the top of the firing list.

Yes, to be frankly honest, I am pretty darn depressed about it. MANY of our customers are in the automotive parts industry, and every sale we make to them has an aura of fear attached to it. If GM and Ford declare bankruptcy, are our customers next? And if so, are we next?

I've started dreaming about work at night - a sure fire way to get no restful sleep!!!

I wish I could believe that it is all media hype - but in my case I know it is all too true. I have been personally affected, my friends and family have received no sweet severance packages, and the job hunt continues for me and many others. Count your blessings, Munchkin.

Apparently the recession IS making you cranky. Where did you see that I wasn't counting my blessings? I've lost 40% of my retirement savings. Good thing I don't retire for another 35 years, and I'm still on track to have over a million upon retirement!

I don't doubt that we're in a recession--everyone with the HOTT severance packages would still have jobs if the economy was good, remember? I do wonder how much the media hypes it up and makes the average Joe freak out a little too much.

Jaysis, woman. Stand down!

Don't over-react. I'm truly happy for those who are not affected. I wish I were one of your number. Perhaps I misunderstood your original post, but my take on it was you are tired of hearing about the recession, it has not really affected you or those you know, and you think it is media hype. Is that fair, or did I miss something subtle? It wasn't meant to be a snarky "Count your blessings" . . . it was a sincere "Boy howdy are you lucky".

If you are truly tired of talking about it, though, I do wonder why you even came to this thread. I began the thread because I did honestly wonder if it is just me, or if others are cranky, or depressed, or whatever. When you are dealing with your own personal crisis it is sometimes hard to gauge where your personal take on it ends and the overall reality begins. Yes, the media can overhype things - but sometimes there is some truth to the coverage, also.

eta - I guess you could say that it is affecting everyone's mood - some by their being affected by it, some by having to deal with the unrelenting media hype.

Amen to that, but I might just up and quit and get like 3 retail or food service jobs or something. Watch this space, kids.

AKA_Monet is on point saying a lot of it is due to Seasonal Affective Disorder. You have that plus a recession, you are not going to have shiny happy people about.

Only speaking for myself, I read Munch's "media hype" statement as it seems like all the news is "OMG Recession! OMG it's another depression! OMG it's only days until we're all in Hoovervilles and standing in soup lines!"

I don't deny that yes, it is hard times out there and there are millions of people who are severely impacted by the current state of the US and World economies. Those who may not be as affected read/hear those news stories and think "well, if it's that bad, I better cut back on spending and start saving, etc..." thereby decreasing their personal stimulus on the economy and so on and so forth.

It's kind of like having a coworker who is always pessimistic about everything. If you hear them bitch and complain about everything all the time, eventually you start to get kind of pessimistic, too.

IDK, maybe that's just my overly simplistic way of thinking.

Because I can.

I wondered if some of the crankiness related to the economy was people just being cranky about hearing it. Like how a lot of people got election overload, recession overload can happen too.

I know I'm probably less tired of hearing about it because I'm not that affected...if I were, then I'd hate even hearing about it. I just wonder if a lot of the stuff the media talks about is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Think about how things get after a hurricane: everyone talks about how there won't be any gas. Everyone gets hysterical about gas, and then there's no gas! If the news folks didn't talk about the imminent gas shortages, there might not be any.

It's not really making me depressed per say. I feel bad for many who are losing jobs, cant find work, etc. I am enjoying cheap gas and massive sales.

I am tired of hearing about how much my husband has lost in his 401K. That is getting irritating more than depressing.

Well, of course you CAN - but my point is that coming on a thread talking about the recession and saying that you are tired of talking about the recession seems to indicate that you must not be tired of talking about it. Or why talk about it? Or read about it? Or subject yourself to others doing just that? :)

My fear - not media-driven - is simply that this is just the beginning. I know that here in Houston our economy has been sheltered from some of the effects of the recession by the energy industry. With gas prices dipping so low - which is a real relief for most of the country - our oil and gas industries will have to make cuts. That means our housing market, which has suffered but not as badly as other places - will start to feel it. All those unemployed energy employees won't be able to spend money and the effects will trickle down to every other business here in town.

i am always a self-imposed Scrooge around this time of year. i dont go shop anywhere other than grocery stores, all my regular shopping is done online. i hate christmas crowds...

that said, this year i am in a particularly pissy mood. i havent worked since LAST NOVEMBER...so the little bit of holiday spirit i managed to scrape together is long gone...especially since i was let go after an unpaid maternity leave, so technically i havent had a paycheck since october 07. the recession, other than not being able to find a job ANYWHERE (not even a damn 7-11! MY DEGREE IS USELESS!), isnt really hitting me as much. its just general moodiness.

It will be interesting to check back in 6 months and see if this is still the case for y'all. I sincerely hope that we are ALL doing great 6 months from now, and we can look back at this and LAUGH . . .

Not to be all silver lining, but I have been through the late 1980's early 1990's recession when none of my friends found jobs, then the downsizings...

I started a business earlier this year. I don't know if it will be successful because I have not finalized my business plan. But, I have moved forward with the formal paperwork that "legitimizes" my business--i.e. EIN, master business license, certificate of formation, etc. Which means, I pay B&O taxes where I have zero income with large amount of expenses... But, I think this can happen... And I am passionate about my business.

Also, I am going back to a certification class different from my educational degrees.

The recession may be fearful for many of us because none of us know the future. But, I am faithful that something will work out and someday this sunshine. I guess you take the good and the bad and the ugly.

The word "depression" depresses people...
~Robert Reich

My husband says that I am doing a good job of stimulating the economy and wants to know if I can please slow down. I tell him it's my patriotic duty to shop hard.:D

Some of the techs at my doctors office commented on how cranky all the patients were that day. For me it had to do with not eating or drinking after midnight and having a 10:30 appt. made me really cranky. It wasn't the economy, it was my tummy!

But seriously, Christmas just isn't the usual cheery season for me this year. Although we have yet to be impacted severely by this downturn, it's the uncertainty of what the future holds that wears on me. It seems like at any point in time, any of us from any industry could loose our jobs in a mass layoff and that is frightening. And it doesn't make me cranky, but it does make me less cheery than usual.

Yeah, I think the economy has made a lot of people grumpy. When money is slow, that would cause anyone to get a little ticked off.

I know the feeling. Every date my boyfriend and I have been on in the past three months has consisted of that very thing.

I'm cranky but I have a toothache. It is the same tooth that my dentist just worked on 2 weeks ago (which by the way, did not hurt until AFTER he worked on it).

He better not be trying to stimulate his economy through my mouth.

ok that sounded like a bad sex joke.

I agree with this sentiment. I can't blame the recession for me not getting a job, because there are plenty of places hiring. Why I haven't gotten a job yet, I have no idea. That is what contributes to my moody, that I can't get even a simple desk job (I agree, my degree seems pretty useless at the moment). I've been out of work since Dec. '07, so it just frustrates me.

I haven't been able to find a link, but they said on our morning news today that Michigan's unemployment rate went from 8.8% in October to 14.6 in November (seasonally adjusted). All I can say is ... isht.

There's something about being reminded that other people are worse off than you that actually can intensify routine crankiness. Yes, we should be appreciative of the things that we have absolutely, but it doesn't make your employer doing its typical morale destroying stuff any more fun. Feeling trapped by knowing that there's no place better to go doesn't improve the management you're getting.

I am very depressed about the economy. We are starting to feel it here in Austin. It sucks when I have to euthanize an animal that is treatable due to finances (this is not new but lately it has been much worse). I have paid for some of the treatments myself and saved a couple of animals but I can't keep doing this. Sometimes I send the animal home with minimal treatment but I am always thinking about how that pet is doing and wondering-are they suffering?? We had 2 full grown cats dumped at our south location, they were so frightened and cold (a tech took them in thank goodness). More and more people have to give up their pets, the shelters are full. People get mad at me when I can't take payments even though I explian to them I do not own the clinic, I have no control over pricing. I had one lady say to me: "well I guess only rich people can have animals" in a vey nasty voice. It makes me hate my job and is very stressful.
All I can say is try and plan for the worse and hope for the best.
ok I am going to jump off a cliff :) J/K (maybe)

Thankfully, I was laid off from my lab position that demanded I euthanize 300 mice over 2 days. That was painful because all those experiments that "could have been done". Scientists need to plan their experiments better!!!

My husband said that when he had to put down a few large animals because they were too sick, that it takes 2-3 days to get over it. It took me 2 weeks to be "fine" with it...

I feel for you!

Do y'all do the CareCredit thing? We recently got one of our cats a P.U. (for non-vet-folk, it's basically taking your anatomically male cat and buying him a $2,000 vagina so he [now it, I guess] can pass bladder stones). The surgery wasn't that expensive, but we had a few post-op complications which resulted in about 2-3 weeks of hospitalization.

There's a 10% financing fee and it's zero % for 1 year (which we'll easily pay off). It's a decent deal though, I guess.

It's time to get more heartworm medication for my dog. I can't afford it, but I can't afford to NOT get it and have him get sick. I need my doggie more than ever now! ARRRGGGHHH. And it is a weekly debate at the grocery store - get the cheap yucky food for him, and save a few dollars, or bite the bullet, get the good stuff, and try to keep him healthy. So far, I get the good stuff. (Not the old at the vet good stuff, but the grocery store good stuff.) I never thought I would be in this situation . . .sigh.

Am I depressed? No
Am I bummed out? Yup.

Due to the economy, my employer cut a total of 700 jobs this year and I am a victim of their quest to become profitable. Things that I never thought twice about buying and not even considered because the severance pay/package isn't that great and it will run out in mid February. My focus is on paying my mortgage, lease and utilities.

Others are taking it much worse than I. I'm keeping a positive attitude that I will have a job before February (ok, it doesn't hurt that I have a 2nd interview with a nearby company lined up for Tuesday), and I'm also not sitting in the house worrying about it. My focus is finding a job in a recession-proof industry.

My gym membership is paid through summer, so I am getting "my money's worth" right now. Christmas will be thin, but everyone understands including my nieces.

Our region is awaiting news on the auto industry, as well. Ford is the largest employer in my town and GM is the largest in my parent's city. That doesn't even count the number of ancillary businesses dependent upon the Big 3.

The UAW will hate me, but I think it's time for concessions. When sitting in my outplacement class last week, our coach, who is a labor-relations expert, outlined UAW wages plus benefits: it costs the companies over $70 per hour, per employee.:eek:

I live with a banker...I am constantly having conversations about the financial situation, and, yes, it is depressing!

We also were around for the early 80's and, in my opinion, this is much worse because the effects seem to be so far reaching. That said, I do feel the media perpetuates a lot of the doom and gloom. Our feeling is that the situation is very real and can easily go very wrong in a matter of days (if the local plant shuts down, people can't pay their bills, then default on loans, etc) and so that makes the future very hard to "bank" on.

We, as are almost everyone we know, pulling in our spending, erring on the side of caution, preparing for the worst but hoping for the best! Did I mention I will have two kids in college next year?! aagh!

YES! This is so true...I have a friend who does this ALL THE TIME. Anything, from "I'm tired," to "I haven't dated anyone in a while," to "This is going to be a tight month..." he always tells me that he has it worse. Grrrrr!

I agree that the UAW needs to make some concessions. I was floored when he said that they would not cut pay until the next contract. However, the $70/hr is misleading. That is taking all benefit/pension/payroll costs and dividing by the current number of workers. Older employees make $20-24/hr straight time. New employees make $14.98/hr. The older employees actual cost with benefits is about $43/hr. Few people actually know how much their employers are spending on their total package. Mine sends out a letter each year with the actual cost of our total benefits and pay. It's shocking how much the bennies cost. The $70/hr is inflated because of retiree pension and benefits. With fewer workers, that number goes up and up.

On the good news front, my next door neighbor who is losing her house because of her husband's death and her loss of seniority and full time status due to an extended medical leave (breast cancer) has found a house that she can afford to buy and is buying on land contract. I'm very sad that they will be moving because they are the best neighbors in the world, but I'm so relieved that she found a good place to live. Her laid off son (mechanical engineer) has found a job in Pittsburgh and her laid off daughter (single mom of two kids) started a job two weeks ago and found a condo to rent that she can afford. Her youngest son is graduating from college this month with a degree in advertising. He may not find a job in his major but he is currently working two other jobs (music store, teaching percussion and working with the school marching band teaching percussion) so he can cover his expenses for a while. Things seem to be falling in place for them. They are like my second family so it's a relief to me too.