So much stress, so little time!

I was thinking about stress today, it's an ironic procrastination, but one we all indulge in when we feel our lives have taken over who we are. There are just times, when we cannot possibly think about all the little things we need to, so we spend each minute worrying about the method of how to solve these problems, instead of actually solving them!

We are all different, and deal with stress in different ways of course. Some of us can sense the stress signals seeping into our brains and taking over all our control. We know of our own, personal rituals we use to combat the immediate problem, whether it's a little time out with mates, a quick chocolate fix, or a bike ride. However, these do not always work and we often become a spectator, watching out lives play out, powerless to take a hold of what we are experiencing and stop the action. Others more prone to stress, fall at the first hurdle and can find no way of getting up again. There are a select few however, that are brilliant time managers, problem solvers and positive pearls of perfection. If you know anyone of this description they are usually the one person who will take you to one side, during a time where you can barely breathe and give you a completely obvious and simple solution that will kill all the birds with one stone. At this point you then become annoyed and stressed at yourself for being so ignorant that you couldn't see the solution for yourself!

I have found that our tear-ducts are directly linked to our stress levels. It's like they can sense when we are about to lose it, and signal the need to release moisture. This can be in the form of complete sobbing or hysterical laughter. It's our body's way of saying it needs a rest, a break. Maybe that is why Kitkat asks us to take a break. Good old Nestle knew that the endorphins in their chocolate would help eliminate our stress levels!

By definition stress is 'a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension' I think this tension is of course subjective but can also be completely invisible. Most stress we create ourselves. A friend pointed out to me today that we felt very busy during the first two years of our degree and now in the third year we are squeezing in so much more. No matter how impossible it seems there is always room for more. We feel completely consumed by our timetables that we are even contemplating scheduling in time to relax! We seem to be managing everything so far.(She says confidently)

Natalie Goldberg notices how the idea of stress is quite melodramatic, 'Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency'. As humans we are conditioned to create, hypothesize, analyze and this often means we imagine what is not really there. This doesn't mean that the stress is a figment of our imagination but the volume of it and our way of dealing with it is sometimes counter-productive. Catherine Puliser sums up the idea of stress in one sweeping, humbling statement, 'When you find yourself stressed, ask yourself one question: Will this matter in 5 years from now? If yes, then do something about the situation. If no, then let it go.

Have a go and see how much time you will save. Now where's that Kitkat?....