groan under (someone or something)
1. Literally, to be in danger of collapsing due to supporting something that is too heavy. Come on, the shelves are practically groaning under the weight of all those book—can't we remove a few of them?
2. To struggle with some sort of burden or difficulty (emotional, psychological, financial, etc.). The average person will certainly groan under these strict new laws. After months of groaning under the weight of depression on my own, I finally started seeing a therapist.
groan under something
1. Lit. to groan while bearing a heavy burden. He groaned under the weight of the trunk. The rafters groaned under the heavy weight of the pianos.
2. Fig. to suffer under a burden. For years, the people had groaned under the cruel ruler. England groaned under the rule of Cromwell just as he had groaned under King Charles.