OP is talking about dreading major kernel updates because shit might break. I'm not talking about tinkering (though I'd argue against that point too, btrfs and timeshift exist).

Arch updates so often I barely even notice a kernel update; I'm certainly not dreading it.

Also side point, super huge updates on arch are normally an indication that you didn't perform a full system update in a while. If things are going to break it's when you dont perform regular system maintenance.