One of the most annoying things about being stressed is that what sets your teeth on edge may not seem all that much.
There’s a snake loose in the basement. He looks like a non-venomous Eastern Garter snake, native to our area, and somehow he got into our basement a couple of weeks ago. Mom’s stressed that there’s a snake in the basement for slightly different reasons that I am. I’m worried the snake is going to die. Mom’s worried that the snake may somehow crawl out of the basement, up to her room and wriggle into her nose while she sleeps. My dog, Pony, ignores the snake and couldn’t care less.
We also have lots of other things Americans stress out about — health care costs, the future, the economy, that sort of thing. And then we turn on TV and see that people around the world suffer from war, natural disaters and famine. And then we feel guilty for spending a sleepless night for all of the things that stress us out. We aren’t going through that, and yet we’re stressed. This can make Mom and I feel guilty. Do we have the right to be stressed?
To Each Their Own
We do have the right to be stressed. Like pain, everyone has their own stress-tolerance levels. What could freak one person out will not necessarily make another person blink. For example, Mom is worried that I don’t put aside enough money for my Social Security. I’m not worried at all about Social Security. I fully expect it not be available by the time I hit 65.
And if you want to help lessen the stress in the world, resist the tempation to tell someone, "You have nothing to be worried about. Look at those people in Burma (or whatever it’s called now). Now THEY have something to be worried about." This does not help the person going through stress. This makes them feel guilty and thus immediately doubles their stress levels.
Name Your Demon And Move On
The ancients believed that if you knew the true name of a spirit or a supernatural being, then you had power over it. This is seen in fairy stories like "Rumplestiltskin." This is also true with emotions, worries, and things that cause you stress. Don’t fret about whether the source of your stress is worthy enough to be called stress. Just acknowledge that you are stressed (for whatever reason) and then deal with the stress.
For example, my neighbors were throwing out an aquarium. It can’t hold water, but should be solid enough for a certain Eastern Garter snake, should he happen to pop up again. In the last week, I’ve also accepted and written snake care writing assignments. If the snake decides to show up again, I’m taking that as a sign that the snake wants the good life.
And Mom won’t have to worry about her nose any more when she sleeps.
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