New Study Names Most 'Stressed' U.S. State

There are plenty of reasons to feel stressed if you're living in the United States right now. Maybe you're worried about filing your taxes. Perhaps you're in the middle of a job search, or feel burnt out at your current position. You might even be concerned about America's involvement in conflicts overseas or other world matters.

April is Stress Awareness Month, and ahead of the change in the calendar, personal finance company WalletHub has released its study on the most and least stressed U.S. states. WalletHub ranked each state across 40 key metrics within four categories: work-related stress, money-related stress, family-related stress and health and safety-related stress.

“There are plenty of small ways for people to manage stress, from staying active and participating in hobbies to taking vacations from work and getting help from a mental health professional," says WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. "What many people don’t realize, though, is that changing location can also be a big stress reducer. For example, states that have lower crime rates, better health care and better economies tend to have much less stressed residents.”

After all the numbers were crunched, Louisiana ranked as the most stressed state in the country.

The 10 most stressed states, per WalletHub

1. Louisiana
2. Kentucky
3. New Mexico
4. West Virginia
5. Arkansas
6. Nevada
7. Oklahoma
8. Oregon
9. Mississippi
10. Alabama

Why are Louisianans so stressed out?

First and foremost, Louisiana is tied with Mississippi for the highest poverty rate and has the worst job security rate while also tying for second for most average hours worked weekly.

Louisiana ranks third for percentage of adults in fair or poor health, with residents also getting the fourth-lowest average hours of sleep per night.

Louisiana also has the second-lowest credit scores in the country, along with the third-highest divorce rate and fourth-highest crime rate.

"Around 16% of residents haven’t seen a doctor in the past year due to the cost," WalletHub says. "In addition, Louisiana ranks among the 10 worst states for both the share of adults reporting poor mental health and the share of adults diagnosed with depression. Residents may also find it difficult to find someone to address mental health issues, since Louisiana has fewer psychologists per capita than most other states."

To read the entire WalletHub study, click here.