Challenges Lately

My life has been filled with challenges since January.  It started with my getting sick a week before a heavy schedule of classes and the busy season at work starting, followed by my dad not doing well and eventually passing away, plus discovering a high blood pressure problem and hot flashes are back!  I know there were a few other things thrown in by I cannot think of them at the moment.

The high blood pressure brought me back to my senses – well, after initialing adding to my high blood pressure!  I had been barely managing my stress level until the last week before Dad died.  The news that he did not have much time pushed me over.  In fact, the week before he died was harder emotionally than when he died. Weird I know.  I suspect I am not letting it truly set in emotionally.

As I stated, realizing I was having problems with high blood pressure brought me back to my senses on a lot of things.  I had never had a high blood pressure problem like this before, so I knew it was from stress.  Stress that came from MY perspective on the events happening in my life, combined with my being overweight and not exercising.

I need to walk the talk, so to speak.  I am always saying how we need to take care of ourselves, but I have not been doing so.  I was stressing myself out about catching up on my homework, which in reality is not as important as my health.  So I took a lower grade one week to help me get caught up.  I am in ’training’ for walking the Bolder Boulder, which I started this week.  I had joined Weight Watchers, however with the events of the past few weeks had stopped actively participating in it.  Time to get back on track!!  I have a class on Journaling the Healing Self…I guess I should be using that as an opportunity to heal myself!!  I bought a Tai Chi dvd, we’ll see how it goes.

Here’s keeping my fingers crossed and we will see how this goes!

Springtime...I want to make changes!!

Spring is a time of year when I get energized.  I want to do stuff.  I want to make changes in my life. 

This time around I have a couple different things happening.  First, due to hormonal changes, I’m refocusing back on my stress management/spirituality.  The mood swing portion of menopause has finally hit.

Second, I have decided to work on my Plan B’s.  I was recently asked, “What are Plan B’s?”  Plan B’s are other options of what to do in life.  I was in a job where I felt trapped and fear kept me there.  Why was I afraid?  Because I didn’t feel I could leave my job.  Why?

I didn’t have confidence in myself and abilities.  I didn’t have job interview skills and with the stress in my life I felt beaten down.

1. I had no networks to tap into because my job and life events had kept me separated from society. 
2. I had no other options for work.  If I was let go from my job because of demand in that field, it would be difficult to find another job in that field. 
3. I had no savings built up.  When things at work got so bad I would have liked to walk off (which I do NOT like to do and have never done), I couldn’t because I had no money to support myself.

So Plan B’s are saving enough money to support myself, having other career options, and having a social network to tap into for networking.  Since I started at my new job (which I love and I still don’t know how I got it – and am eternally grateful I did), I have been enjoying it and not really focusing on Plan B’s.  However, even without focusing on it I have completed my Bachelor’s degree (YEA!!!  It only took me 28 years).  I now need to focus on implementing things in that field. 

 So what am I going to do now?

1)      Along with having a job I love, which is giving me opportunities to grow, earning my Bachelor’s degree has given me a confidence in myself that I didn’t have before.  Professors have been highly encouraging me to go for a Master’s and Ph.D.  I have decided to pursue my Master’s in Gerontology and I am contemplating the PhD.

2)       I am refocusing on stress management techniques to help manage the stress.

3)      I need to network.  I hate this one as it seems so contrived.  I like to meet people for the sake of meeting people, not for ulterior motives.  So I’m just going to have to get involved with activities I want to be involved with, and whoever I meet, I meet.

4)      I am working on other options.  With my Bachelor’s now earned, I have that field open to me.  As it is Journalism with an emphasis in PR, I am going to start doing freelancing work.  I would like to see if I can write magazine articles.  Writing this blog will give me hands-on writing experience.  Along with this, I am working on a Management/Marketing certificate/degree from the community college, as well as taking a class a semester at the university – hopefully for the Master’s program.

5)      I will be following a budget, making sure to put money aside each month.  I need to set mini-goals.

6)      Coworkers suggested I contract myself for various jobs involving the computer, such as PowerPoint presentations, formatting of documents, editing, etc.  I will be making up business cards to give out.

 There are plenty of others things I need to be doing, but I have to be careful as I tend to get so excited I take on too much at once.  Let’s see how this goes!

Emergency Stress Kit

I got caught up in life recently...my apologies for not posting something sooner.

I have put together two things...one is my emergency stress kit, one is my prevention plan.  In my emergency stress kit are:

• First and foremost, make sure I am spiritually connected.  Have I been meditating and staying connected with my higher power?  This is the most important one, the rest are tools my higher power provided me.
• Comedy television shows and movies!  When I'm having problems, I need the laughter...it's one of the best forms of stress relief.
• If I am having trouble sleeping due to stress or anxiety, I like Sleepytime Extra.  About the time I am half way through the cup, I can hardly keep my eyes open (I make sure I'm in bed prior to drinking it).  I found the regular Sleepytime does not do quite the job as Sleepytime Extra.  If I am at work, or do not want to do to sleep, I use Tension Tamer.
• Physical exercise!!  This is a must to wear off that energy that is built up!!  Many studies show aerobic exercise is the best, however for me I find that using my muscles works best.  So I clean, rearrange my furniture, etc.
• Yoga/Meditation - or any form of relaxation technique (I've just discovered Qi-Gong and love it).  These relaxation techniques help calm the mind.
• Vitamin B supplement.
• Try to eliminate all caffeine and sugar! The system does not need that when you are trying to calm down.
• I have to admit, I have a teddy bear I sleep with when it's really bad.  It's comforting.
• I have CD's that help reduce stress.  Some have soothing music, such as Enya, Yanni, Kenny G, or are made just for the purpose of reducing stress (found in the book stores), others are affirmation CDs.
• List reasons I am grateful...blue sky, flowers, a pet snuggling with me, the smell of rain on the ground, a child's laughter, hot running water for a shower...the list can go on indefinitely.
• Go to the Do As One site.  This site focuses on breathing (or laughter in one 'room').  I really like this site as there are various length timers, including one for only two minutes.  This is a great resource to use when I don't have much time, such as when I'm at work.
• DRINK LOTS OF WATER!!!
• JOURNAL!!!

This is my stress management kit...so if I can't find my document on my computer, at least I can always come back here!  Next I will be talking about my prevention plan, which will be very similar to the above...

Have a peaceful day everyone!

Anxiety Bloomed Again

Last evening an event happened that reminded me to focus on anxiety prevention.  Recently I became lax on doing what I am supposed to be doing.  One of my beloved cats, Chloe, got out of the yard.  Now realistically, Chloe knew how to get back home.  She used to be a neighbor's cat that kept getting out of his house and coming to mine (he eventually told me to keep her).  So I KNEW she would come back...however anxiety took over.  I thought about all the posters and Lost ads I've seen over the years, and the stories I've heard people tell about how their pet never returned.  And hey, there are cars out there that could hit her...and cruel kids that think it's funny to torture animals, not to mention dogs that attack cats.  My anxiety skyrocketed!

In the past I put together a "Stress Management Emergency Kit" for times such as these.  However, life had been going so well in the last year or so that I forgot all about it.  Then when I did remember, I couldn't remember anything in it, nor the list of what it contained.  This morning I hop onto the computer to redo my kit, as well as put together an official anxiety prevention plan.  Before I started, I search my computer just in case my kit list was there...and of course it was!  In plain site, top level of My Documents.  I shook my head at myself.

So right now I'm developing my anxiety prevention plan, as well as updating my Stress Management Emergency Kit.  I believe in the Mind~Body~Soul connection, so I want to make sure all these areas are covered in my plan and kit.  I'll post my anxiety prevention plan next...need to go finish it...stay tuned...then after that will be my Stress Management Emergency Kit. 

In the meantime, remember to breathe!!

Strength from Trials

My life had been a fairly easy one, even though my parents divorced when I was young.  I was fortunate in that my parents worked hard to remain friends.  I have been very grateful to them for that. 

In 1999, it seemed like the ‘powers that be’ took a look at my life and decided I was WAY behind on the trials we all have in life - and they decided to catch me up on them.  For nine years, my life was lived in what I call a ‘black hole’.  Hit after hit came, giving me no time to recover before the next one hit.  During that time I remember reading about how trials make us stronger.  And I vehemently disagreed with that statement.  I felt weaker, not stronger – they were crazy and didn’t know what they were talking about!

I had major anxiety issues from all the stress that was going on in my life.  I had no 'tools' to deal with what was happening.  My mental state...well, while my family has always considered me odd, was now also on shaky ground.  I couldn't take it any more...I had to find a way to deal with this.  I did a lot of researching anxiety.  This introduced me to many tools and resources to help me.  And each thing I learned led me to another one, which eventually led me to my spiritual journey I am currently on.

Three years ago these major events culminated with the death of my eldest nephew.  As sad as I am, I have to be grateful to him - he gave me a last gift in his passing.  It was through that whole ordeal that I recognized that I had become stronger.  The saying was true, we do become stronger through our trials.  I now view it as similar to strengthening our muscles.  We have to be pushed to the point of being a little weaker, in order for the muscles to build and become stronger.

If you’re in a ‘black hole’, believing you’re weaker and will never be strong(er) again, just have faith.  It just takes a little time, but you will come out on the other side stronger. Trust me, I’ve been there.