Stress
Pharmaceutical reps don't have it easy, as they usually spend their workday jumping over Olympic-size hurdles to get the job done.
First challenge: trying to get in to see the doctor. Doctors aren't known for having lots of free time, and they rarely carve out time just to hear from pharma reps. A rep may wait around in a doctor's office for an hour before the doctor is "in" for the rep.
Once they're with the good doctor, the rep might have to make their pitch as the doc rushes down a hallway to the next appointment, or in between bites as they wolf down a sandwich during a five-minute break. Other physicians may refuse to talk to reps at all, so you might not even know if you'll be allowed in the door on a particular day.
To make matters even more stressful, those five minutes are critical to your paycheck. Since a big chunk of a pharma rep's salary rides on getting drugs into consumer hands via a doctor or other health care pro, the success of that harried five-minute pitch is crucial.
Toss in plenty of traffic battles, long hours, the constant need to bone up on new products, and the competition trying to muscle in on your territory, and that's the recipe for a nice, heaping plate of stress-a-roni.