Stress.

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milefile

milefile

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What do you do about it? What stresses you? How do you know you are stressed? How does it manifest itself?

What is it??

It is my nature to internalize stress. I don't take things out on other people, yell and get irritable, well rarely anyway. But it goes straight to my physiology. I get digestive problems and headaches, shakey hands and muscle twitches (concealable). But I appear fine to almost everyone.

Yesterday a new thing happened to me. I was sitting at my desk thinking about my doctor appointment earlier in the day where I asked for help with quitting smoking. Suddenly my stomach felt hot and a wave swept over me, emanating from my stomach. My heart raced and I started sweating. I looked at my arm and it was flushed. My lips went numb and my fingers and toes tingled. It was intense but not quite overwhelming. It happened twice in about fifteen minutes, lasting for a minute or two each time. I thought I was getting sick, coming down with something. It subsided but lingered in a barely noticeable way. When I told my wife about it (she's a social worker) she said it sounded like a panic attack. I hadn't thought about it that way. But I went and looked at the American Psychologocal Association's website, and lo-and-behold, there it was... all my symptoms under the heading Panic Attack. It said they usually start in young adults and are triggered by some life transition event. Well... quitting smoking is a biggie since I've done that for more than half my life. And I guess having our first child in a month might be a little stressful, too. It also said merely understanding what it is and what could have caused it is enough for most people to deal with it.

It gets you thinking, though. It's pretty amazing that I basically feel fine and really have never been happier in general over nothing in particular, and stress can build up without you even noticing and come out in some unexpected way. Maybe that twitch in my lip last week was a precursor.
 
I also internalize it.....for about 10 minutes. If it's a person causing me stress (which it usually is.) Then I look at why they are causing me stress. If it's just for the sheer pleasure of it then I let them have it. They usually don't cause me stress anymore.

If it's my deadlines at work then I can't really take it out on someone. I keep it in and occasionally I get light dizzy spells.
I look for some kind of release of my stress and it usually comes out in my workouts(good thing) or on the highway(unfortunatly).
 
My girlfriend suffers from panic attacks. She has a boat load of medical problems and today I think was one that is going to cause a lot of pain in her life. She just recently got out of the hospital which caused me a great deal of stress. I was living off three to five hours of sleep a night. If I wasn't at work I was there because all I could do was think about her. This went of for three weeks. My blood pressure increased, and my smoking got worse. She had a surgeory that was more exploring then anything and thank god they did. They found four things that were wrong. One of them is major. Today, she had an appointment with a doctor for a follow-up. Now here is the part that is going to cause a lot of stress not only for me, but for the rest of her life. She was told she would never be able to have kids. . . I really don't what to do, and it is stressing me out, especially working on a sales job.
 
exactly, that is what she was telling me, I could not remember or spell it for the life of me.
 
I don't get stressed because I don't care enough about what goes on around me to be bothered with that. Other people get stressed, though. Sometimes they roll down their windows and tell me just how stressed they are.
 
I internalize my stress as well. Once it's been piling up for awhile, *sometimes* I'll cry about it, but not often. It usually gets taken out on the wrong people if I happen to blow up. I usually only notice I'm stressed about once a month.. hehe.

The most stressful thing in my life is my living situation. I desperately want to move out, but I can't afford it while in school FT and only working PT. On one hand, I'd love to get an apartment with my boyfriend in a year or so, but on the other hand, we really shouldn't live together. So I don't know what I'm gonna do, other than try not to go crazy while I'm here at home.
 
I rarely get stressed.

Sure, if I get mad at someone for doing something, then I'll give it some serious thought. But it doesn't affect me inwardly or outwardly, at least not that much. I learned several years ago that if something is going to be causing me a heapful of stress, I should just push it in the back of my mind until it falls off the other edge. This is not internalizing my stress, nor is it being ignorant. I just simply don't let it bother me. Stress is one of (if not the) leading cause of premature death, and there's no way I'm going to let it get a hold of my life... I'm a stress-free control freak. :D
 
I like to laugh at everything and take everything as a joke, so nothing really stresses me. For the most part at least.

If i do get stressed I take the time to bug the hell out of someone around me, or just cry gently into my pillow.
 
Originally posted by youth_cycler
I rarely get stressed.

I should just push it in the back of my mind until it falls off the other edge. This is not internalizing my stress, nor is it being ignorant. I just simply don't let it bother me.
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This is what I thought until yesterday.
 
My whole life is stress. Im stressed right now, even if it doesnt seem like it.

My life? A living hell. :)
 
I can usually tell as my already notably short temper gets shorter, and I tend to have the extra two or three beers.

I find exercise about the best method of dealing with it.

When Mum was dying of cancer this time last year I found running a great release.
 
I used to use the "fight method"...destroying the crap out of something in the backroom of a supermarket (quite fun actually!) was a good stress reliever. But now I use the "flight" method, avoidance and moving myself away from a stressful situation that I don't really need to be in. If I'm stressed, I ask why? and just push away if necessary.

When I can't avoid it (like when I was bothered all night when I discovered my mother had Stage 3 breast cancer), i tend to internalize, and just get my mind off of things...a good long walk or riding my bike seems to work. Driving to the middle of nowhere used to do the trick, but I have too many responsibilities to up and do that anymore.

Playing GT usually does the trick, talking with Kathy or my friends (were always able to lean on each other for assistance), when possible, there helpful.

Work is adifferent type of stress, I just take the warrior's attitude and take it like a man...but I do get the occassional urge to thrown groceries (glass stuff or eggs) at the back wall of a Publix.
 
I'm more and more convinced that there is a place where one may toss unwanted stress and forget about it. But I'm even more convinced that this space will eventually become full and begin to overflow.
 
Originally posted by milefile
I'm more and more convinced that there is a place where one may toss unwanted stress and forget about it. But I'm even more convinced that this space will eventually become full and begin to overflow.
Click to expand...
Sounds like an alternate theme song to "Cheers".

"...Where everybody knows your name..."
 

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