Framing anxiety as the wind in this analogy, I'd say the _unnatural_ amount of social concerns we impose on children---and people as a whole---is more like growing trees in a wind tunnel.

Yeah, anxiety is a natural response. And we've developed biological mechanisms to adapt to it. But the application of anxiety has changed _so much_ in just the last few centuries. Anxiety sources have proliferated. Beyond food and shelter, we have anxieties about grades, waking up early, approval from peers, et cetera. This compounds, especially if you come from a family that struggles to even provide food and shelter. Children are also then told they live in a meritocracy and therefore should internalize their shortcomings and bad marks.

I digress, but I don't think we can appeal to nature and argue our current situation as natural. We can be doing better.