I had a weird thought today. I was recently lamenting about the amount of demands I face this summer and today I was thinking Thank God I have the strength to deal with it all. Am I grateful for stress then? Not so much, but at least it makes me stop and say Wow, I am a pretty strong person.......
How do I personally deal with it? For one thing, I prioritize my life. There are things I would like to get done and they don't. Those are the things that can wait. I can wait another month or season to paint the porch. People who need me, however, can't wait. So, I rearrange my plans.
Another thing I do is take care of myself. As much as possible I make sure I am sleeping and eating right. I also make time for fun. If I have a social event planned like a craft club, I will try my best to keep the date. I know friends and laughter are the best medicine for me. Some people require solitude, not me. I require venting and sarcasm and silliness.
Without going into my personal challenges here, I will also recommend professional counsel. Even if it is someone else who has the problem, I tend to internalize quite a bit. In other words, I am a worrier. One example is my grand-daughter is going into second grade and she isn't a reader! That worries me. Maybe she will be a late bloomer, but I can't relax and let nature take its course. I have to be proactive about it so I worked all summer to pay for her reading lessons instead of taking it easy like I was planning. If I am willing to work this hard for reading lessons, imagine how worked up I could get over something like a family illness. So, I have a very capable counselor who affirms my thoughts and insights and makes me feel like I am indeed making a difference.
Although there are a few times it gets the better of me, I would say overall I deal effectively and that is something to be grateful for in and of itself.
A quote for the occasion? "If it doesn't hurt, you aren't growing." OUCH!
