Hi all,
We just set a hot fix live that should help with the difficulty, particularly for first time players.
There are 3 main things we've done:
Wolf Frequency: Wolves won't spawn initially, which should give you time to gather up some resources before you get swarmed.
Affliction Bleed Rates: The rate at which a number of afflictions cause your stats to bleed out has been reduced.
Biome Ramp Up: The initial biome rafting experience has been eased a bit, so you'll hit fewer rapids in the first couples miles of the river.
Let us know what you think in the forums. Thanks!