I've been feeling that life is getting harder as well lately. I realized that everone is trying to live the "american dream" for lack of a better phrase. The perceived standard of happiness is from looking at standards that are portrayed in mass media and social media that are misleading.
In my hometown families had a car and a scooter that would be used for family outings and going to the veg. Market accordungly. All of sudden I started seeing bentleys and jaguars . At first I thought that people are getting richer. Its not that. The money was always there. Its just that globalization and mass media changed consumption.