… in the face of almost unbearable stress

Welcome to Manic Monday Edition #15:

SURVIVE

Did you ever wake up in the morning thinking everything is going to be relaxed? And then you came to the sudden realization:”Wait, I´m going to do all of that? In one week? This week? *shriiiiiek*”

You know how you have those days (or maybe weeks, months or years) that just seem to be loaded with stress? I know: It´s all relative - one person´s stress is another person´s holiday.

How do you survive a stress storm? Do you have any ultimate plans how to cope when everything hits you at once?

When my life somehow has gotten out of control, like now, and stress has its grip on me I try to break the grip of stress - by providing some time off and using different anti-stress techniques

How to survive almost unbearable stress:

1.) Plan an escape. Take a few hours off and do the most dramatically easy but fun thing you can think of. Go see a matinee downtown, have a fantastic lunch, shop, browse, and walk. Be as indulgent as you can stand, and drag as many of your friends along with you.

2.) Laugh. Whatever it is you find funny, bring more of it into your life. Whether it´s certain people, films, tv shows, plays, books. Choose to laugh -

“Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it.”
(Bill Cosby)

3.) Scream. I do believe in primal screams. I always feel better after I´ve yelled at the top of my lungs for no particular reason, doubly so if I´m pissed off about something. Practice different screams, such as yelling ordinary words (”Coffee mug!!!” - “Bratwurst!!!” - “Apple juice!!!”) vs. generic scream sounds (”Aaarrrrgggh!”). Advanced stage of screaming: Get friends and co-workers to participate if you can.
But even if you scream alone, and you have to do it into a pillow or underwater to not upset the neighbors, do it anyway. You´ll feel better, I promise.

4.) Fun time. How much time per day do you do stuff purely for fun? Just because you like it and for no other reason? Why isn´t this number larger? What is more important than fun and happiness over the course of a lifetime? Allow yourself fun, no matter how stressed you are.

5.) Sleep & Exercise. Unfortunately, our minds are connected to our bodies, and if we treat our bodies poorly, well, our minds kind of get pissed off. I´ve found that if I´m not getting enough exercise, I´m about at least half as useful to the world than otherwise. Start taking a walk every day. Go swimming. Have more (or better) sex. Free up your body, and your mind will follow.

6.) Bunk. Get in the car, pick a direction, and drive. Grab friends, or not. Bring food, or not. Play music really loud, or just roll down the windows, and stick your head out (*psst* This is a good time to scream).

I´m not sure about how I´m going to make it, but by this time one week from today I will be marveling at all I accomplished - hopefully. Right now, I´m wondering how I’m going to do it. I will take my “How to survive“-guide to my heart and (I hope) I will survive. Please keep your fingers crossed for me ;)

You are that <———-> closed to survive my survival post. Are you ready to identify these random “Survive” lyrics?

(1) After of all of the darkness and sadness/Soon comes happiness/If I surround my self with positive things/I´ll gain prosperity
(2) You alone across the floor/You and me and nothing more/You´re the great mistake I never made/I never lied to you, I hated when you lied/But I´ll survive your naked eyes

(3) Some people put the best outside/Some people keep the best inside/Some people can´t stand up strong/Some people won´t wait for long.

(4) I’ll never be an angel/I’ll never be a saint it’s true/I’m too busy surviving/Whether it’s heaven or hell/I’m gonna be living to tell

(5) And so you’re back from outer space/I just walked in to find you here, with that sad look upon your face/I should have changed that stupid lock/I should have made you leave your key/If I had known for just one second you’d be back to bother me

Oooops, I reneged on my promise to myself not to post anything about this song today… the reason is it evokes some “”strange memories. But I´ve chosen (5) especially for Mo, my wonderful friend and brilliant force behind Manic Monday. Everything´s gonna be alright, my friend! You´re a survivor! =)

Now, whole Blogosphere, let´s screeeeeam! 3-2-1:
“Braaaaaatwuuuuurst!!!”

xoXOxo,
my dear readers and survivors of this special “How to survive“-post!

And now…

… our moment of Homer J.:

Homer: Oh, so they have internet on computers now!

Manic Monday
survive
lyrics
The Simpsons