Stress about Stress
Does your stress have stress? Think about it for a minute. If you're a mom, a busy professional, a college student or simply a living breathing human, you've got stress somewhere in your life. Sure, there are those who deal so well with stress that you would never know how frazzled their world is, but perhaps they are urban legends. Ask anyone you know if they know of such a person, and the answer will probably be 'no.'
There are vitamins and pill-popping Western medicine conventions that say, 'take this and you'll feel better,' but how about putting down the child-proof capped puzzles and picking up a carnation at the grocery store and putting it in a vase? How about lighting a soft blue or cream-colored candle in your home? How about turning OFF the TV and listening to the silence once in a while? Reading a book instead of a magazine that assaults us with Madison Avenue hype with every flip of the page? How about scheduling a no-TV night..... a "read-in" if you will? How about turning off overhead lighting and using lamps with lower wattage bulbs? What about eating real fruit instead of high-fructose corn syrup (and YES, it's BAD for you, no matter what the commercials tell you....) fruit snacks?
When was the last time you went to the duck pond and fed the ducks (please use popcorn and not bread)? Remember kite flying? Hula-hooping? Biking? Getting out into Mother Nature is a quick-fix for too much stress and most of us don't take full advantage of the outside world. We've built technology up so much that although we can take it anywhere, maybe we should leave it inside and get back to the simpler lifestyle. Do you remember what people used to do before they couldn't reach you on your cell phone or through call waiting or email? They called you on your HOME phone and if you didn't have an answering machine, they called you back. If they really needed to see you urgently, they came over to your house. Somehow, some way, you were always found, you got the news you needed and life moved on just as it always did. Sure there were the exceptions to the rule when someone's health was involved, but unless those times were unexpected, you stuck near home to be able to answer the phone, or someone always knew where to reach you.
In this age of "reach out and touch someone, even if they are in the bathroom," maybe it's time we started making ourselves a little LESS available again. Let people hunt for you a bit. There is no law that states you must be available to the world 24/7, and that doesn't mean simply turning off the cell phone ringer at night. Trying going for half a day without your phone, or email. You may find that being a little less available to others, gives you a little more freedom to be available for yourself. You can't recharge unless you unplug.
Give it a whirl and let us know what you think.
Gloria Attar RN BSN
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