stress relief

Stress Management

A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked, "How heavy is this glass of water?"

Answers called out ranged from 8oz to 20 oz.

The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it."

"If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.

If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance."

"In each case it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes
and that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on."

"As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden. "

"So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work/life down. Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow."

"Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can. Relax; pick them up later after you've rested. Life is short. Enjoy!"

And then he shared some ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

* Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.

* Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

* Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their Maker.

* If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

* Never buy a car you can't push.
* Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

* Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

* The second mouse gets the cheese.

* When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.

* Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

* You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.

* A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.


NaiL IN THE FENCE

There once was a little boy who had a bad Temper.

His Father gave him a bag of nails

And told him that every time he lost his Temper,
he must hammer a nail into the back

of the fence. The first day the boy had

Driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next

Few weeks, as he learned to control his

Anger, the number of nails hammered daily

Gradually dwindled down. He discovered

It was easier to hold his temper than to

Drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn't

Lose his temper at all. He told his father

About it and the father suggested that the

Boy now pull out one nail for each day that

He was able to hold his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally

Able to tell his father that all the nails

Were gone. The father took his son by the

Hand and led him to the fence He said, 'You

Have done well, my son, but look at the

Holes in the fence. The fence will never be

The same. When you say things in anger,

They leave a scar just like this one. You

Can put a knife in a man and draw it out.

It won't matter how many times you say I'm

Sorry, the wound is still there.

' A verbal

Wound is as bad as a physical one.

Friends are very rare jewels, indeed. They

Make you smile and encourage you to succeed.

They lend an ear, they share words of praise

And they always want to open their hearts to us.'

to eat or not to eat

One of the things that has happened since I divorced my husband is that I don't eat properly. there are several reasons for this.
when SF was here he did most of the cooking (when he wasn't in the pub). I did all the running around taking the boys everywhere he did the cooking. (he got home from work 3 hours earlier than me)I would get a meal put in front of me. Not always what I wanted and not always at convenient times but it was there and nine times out of ten I would eat it.
then I decided I couldn't stay married to him. He stopped cooking for anyone but himself. fine I can and do cook, I always cooked when he wasn't here anyway.

I began cooking meals for the boys but wasn't hungry myself ( a combination of stress and my new progesterone tablets). I would cook for them and decide that I would get myself something later. Sometimes I didn't fancy a proper meal and just snacked. Other times I would suddenly realise that it was bed time and I hadn't been hungry so hadn't eaten.
the weight that had crept on over the years of pregnancy, breast feeding, comfort eating, then the bad diet due to my radiotherapy combined with lack of energy as I recovered, began to fall off me. In the summer of 2006 I was wearing size 14 skirts and jeans. I hadn't been that size since before I fell pregnant with #1 son. (gained 4.5 st in that preganancy).

but then I did a few weeks temp work which involved working from 12 noon until 6pm this meant a very early lunch followed by a late dinner. I was snacking in between to stave off the low blood sugar that I sometimes suffer from. I began snacking more at home too. I still wasn't eating proper meals. My mum takes me out for lunch and to rotary dinners so that she can make sure I have a proper meal now and again.

by the time I started this job in June my work clothes were getting a little too snug. again I have a job which involves working through lunch time. I eat at my desk, but the difference to others is that my work means constant keyboard work. It would be very difficult for me to eat a salad at my desk whilst still typing. So I tend to eat mostly sandwiches or rolls.
Again in the evenings I feed the boys and may or may not feed myself later. Occasionally I will eat with the boys but not often. Most things only seem to be enough for them anyway. I think it must be about 3 years since I last ate a roast dinner but that is partly through choice and partly
because I cant afford to buy a joint or a chicken that is big enough for all of us. If there is not enough I prefer to feed my boys first.

Now on top of all this I have an inner turmoil going on. I expressed this to a friend for the first time a few months ago.
It is like I have two voices going on inside my head. there is the one that tells me I must eat to keep healthy. then there is the other one which tells me I must not eat too much as I need to lose weight. Now I know this sounds like annorexia.........but I know that I am not dangerously thin, if anything I am dangerously overweight. Not only can I not get into my size 14 skirts anymore but it the same with size 16.....some size 18 are now too tight. there is no way I want to get back to the size I was a few years ago.

So where does this leave me?
I have an inability to eat fibre (fruit, veg, whole grains, its a long list) except in very small quantities. :-( I miss my salads and fruit
I have a job that makes it difficult to eat a healthy lunch
I have little money and 4 growing lads to feed
I have a small appetite.
I have an inner turmoil

But now I have a volunteer to try to get me to eat properly and in the best way for me so that I can eat properly and still lose weight.