Stress management

Yesterday, I attended a stress management class at work. I voluntarily signed up for this course, because I feel "burned out". This class was not the greatest class in the world, I have to admit. I did take one thing away from it though - my impact on others when I'm stressed out. My attitude toward others and how I react to situations. The effects on my health, (which I already had a pretty good idea about)... It made me realize that I need to try a little harder to get my stress under control. So, here's the first part of my "stress journal". The things that stress me out most, are money, work, not having enough hours in a day, and feeling tired all the time. Money has two parts - income, which I can control, and output which is somewhat under my control. Unexpected expenses like my dental bill I definitely cannot. Work, I cannot control. The only thing I can control at work is my attitude. I cannot control that there never seems to be enough hours in a day, but I believe that plays off of me feeling tired and burnt out all the time. I can control when I go to bed, and when I wake up, and how many naps I take. So there we have it - the things I can control, and the things I cannot control. There are other little things that stress me out, but those are the big ones.

The way that I react to such things varies - when I'm stressed from work, I become isolated and don't want to talk to anyone or do anything. I have stomach issues, and my heart palpitates. Finances, I can feel my heart racing, and I feel condemned. "All-or-nothing" thinking starts taking over, like I'll "never" be able to buy anything for myself ever again. When I feel overwhelmed by the things I would like to get done and the amount of time I have to do those things, I shut down and don't do any of them. And when I'm awfully tired, I sleep - 12 hours a day. I never feel like going to the gym, because I'm tired. It would be fantastic stress management to go to the gym, but then it comes back to not having enough hours in a day. I would like to go to the gym every day, but that would mean I'd have to get up earlier, or rearrange my morning in some other way, such as giving up my morning routine.

In my first post - it has been my goal to identify my major stressors, the things I can and cannot change, and my reaction to those stressors. Next time, I will be looking at what I can do to lower stress.

-Sara