It's true, stress does make my face break out, and I hate it. It wasn't great prior to leaving Atlanta (by fact my father pointed this out to me) but it wasn't horrible either. However, the culmination of stress over the last two weeks at work has made every single zit appear on my face it seems. So much so that no massive amount of cover up will diminish it! (damn hormones too!)
Throughout the last few days, I decided to extend an outreach invitation of talking things over via coffee. I'm still waiting that reply which in and of itself is anxiety-provoking. I'm honestly not sure what has happened the last month in a half or so, but it is unfair for either of us to continue on this way without some sort of explanation from both of us. I'm hopeful...and hopeful my zits will disappear too.
Disclaimer: Although work is the center of my life right now (which also tells me I need more of a life), I have decided to refrain from going into much detail after my last few posts about work.
Showing posts with label stress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stress. Show all posts
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Stress Awareness Month
It seems there is an awareness month for just about every single thing. March was apparently Caffeine Awareness month, Nutrition, Frozen Food, Peanut, Gender Equality, On-Hold (whatever that means), and Social Work month just to name a few. May hold its fair share with Barbecue, Salad, Salsa, Egg, Mental Health, Meditation, and Physical Fitness and Sports month.
Every month has a wide array of causes. Some are more prominent while others are a bit obscure but all want to bring awareness to an issue or celebrate for a cause. One for April is Stress Awareness Month with April 16 being Stress Awareness Day in conjunction with the stress of taxes. Here is a list of other awareness months.
I bring up stress, because it's something we all deal with. There is no real "immunity" for stress other than to take care of ourselves. I noticed the last few days at work, I was becoming very stressed with determining a schedule, getting PowerPoints done, the opening of the building, my boss not thinking I was doing everything "right," etc.I was becoming increasingly agitated, defensive, and upset by all this. I had brief thoughts of just wanting to shut down, deprive myself, exercise compulsively, all those lovely de-coping ED skills. This was a reminder and a hint I really needed to take care of myself, do things that were going to allow me to feel satisfied, to take a breath before things got out of hand. In the end, stress + prolonged time = exacerbated ED/lapse/relapse.
I think this is just another step in recovery. It's not always easy to recognize how stress is affecting us until we get to the point of no oblivion, but if we can see it before it is too late, we can take actions to thwart ourselves into a self-destructive state.
Every month has a wide array of causes. Some are more prominent while others are a bit obscure but all want to bring awareness to an issue or celebrate for a cause. One for April is Stress Awareness Month with April 16 being Stress Awareness Day in conjunction with the stress of taxes. Here is a list of other awareness months.
I bring up stress, because it's something we all deal with. There is no real "immunity" for stress other than to take care of ourselves. I noticed the last few days at work, I was becoming very stressed with determining a schedule, getting PowerPoints done, the opening of the building, my boss not thinking I was doing everything "right," etc.I was becoming increasingly agitated, defensive, and upset by all this. I had brief thoughts of just wanting to shut down, deprive myself, exercise compulsively, all those lovely de-coping ED skills. This was a reminder and a hint I really needed to take care of myself, do things that were going to allow me to feel satisfied, to take a breath before things got out of hand. In the end, stress + prolonged time = exacerbated ED/lapse/relapse.
I think this is just another step in recovery. It's not always easy to recognize how stress is affecting us until we get to the point of no oblivion, but if we can see it before it is too late, we can take actions to thwart ourselves into a self-destructive state.
How do you combat stress? When do you know it has become a problematic?
On a side note, the word stress originally comes from the Latin word stringere meaning "to draw tight." The term stress was first coined in the 1930s by endocrinologist Hans Selye who also came up with "eustress" or good stress as opposed to distress. Selye came up with a biopsychsocial concept of stress and adaption which took awhile for academic psychologists to take seriously and research further. By the 1990s, "stress" became more understood as a physiological and psychological functioning.
Note--*Stress by numbers here and here.
Argentinian study on stress and eating disorders (full text available in Spanish)
A few other studies of stress and eating disorders here and here
On a side note, the word stress originally comes from the Latin word stringere meaning "to draw tight." The term stress was first coined in the 1930s by endocrinologist Hans Selye who also came up with "eustress" or good stress as opposed to distress. Selye came up with a biopsychsocial concept of stress and adaption which took awhile for academic psychologists to take seriously and research further. By the 1990s, "stress" became more understood as a physiological and psychological functioning.
Note--*Stress by numbers here and here.
Argentinian study on stress and eating disorders (full text available in Spanish)
A few other studies of stress and eating disorders here and here
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Caffeine in the news again
According to a recent poll, Tampa, FL is the most caffeinated place among 20 metropolitan cities surveyed. Seattle, Chicago, New York, and Los Angelos round out the top five. This poll looked at caffeine consumption of products such as coffee, teas, sodas, energy drinks, chocolate, pain relievers, and caffeine pills, as well as surveyors' attitudes and habits.
A few interesting results arose. About three-quarters of those polled did not believe they were addicted to caffeine. Though Tampa had the highest overall caffeine consumption, residents there ranked first in saying they were not addicted to caffeine. Tampa was also first in pain reliever consumption and third in consumption of energy drinks. Seattle still had the number one spot for highest coffee consumption which makes sense as it is home to Starbucks.
Although this survey only included 2,005 people, not a huge study by national standards, I still think these outcomes are useful in general terms. I think most people would not consider themselves addicted to caffeine. There are many people who really need their cup of "joe" in the morning. Not that it is a bad thing, one or two cups of coffee a day. (truth be told, I drink about 4 cups of decaf in the morning, sometimes half-caff) However, people forget about the hidden products which contain caffeine, albeit maybe not as high as energy drinks, but I know I would not have thought of pain relievers or eating a lot of chocolate.
For the record, residents of Riverside/San Bernardino, California, Atlanta, San Diego, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Dallas consumed the least amount of caffeine in the country, according to this poll.
In another interesting twist with high caffeine consumption, a study in the Journal of Personality and Individual Differences discusses high caffeine intake and the propensity to hallucinations. By "high," this is the equivalent of seven cups or more of instant coffee. In this study low caffeine users were equivalent to one cup or less of instant coffee--about 57 mg for one rounded teaspoon The study took into account caffeine products such as coffee, tea, soda, energy drinks, chocolate, and caffeine tablets.
Assessing both the caffeine consumption and stress levels, some participants had hallucinatory responses such as hearing voices or seeing things not there, and sensing the presence of dead people. Researchers think that because caffeine may possibly exacerbate the physiological response to stress, more of the stress hormone cortisol is produced, thus leading to a tendency to hallucinate. Though I don't have concrete numbers or specific information, I think this is still a good look into how nutrition and stress play a role on the body and mind.
One important thing to mention as the authors do indicate is that hallucinations aren't necessarily a sign of mental illnesses. Some people have brief bouts while other have them their entire lives. Personally, I've had those moments where I thought I was hearing a certain voice or seeing something that wasn't there. However, I'm not so sure if it was related to just coincidence, caffeine consumption (yes, I was once a caffeine junkie), food or sleep deprivation. Probably a combination of the last three, but I do remember a specific incidence not too long ago where I continued to hear music everywhere. That was bit unnerving and it really made me feel weird, but it did go away.
Related post: Should energy drinks be regulated?
A few interesting results arose. About three-quarters of those polled did not believe they were addicted to caffeine. Though Tampa had the highest overall caffeine consumption, residents there ranked first in saying they were not addicted to caffeine. Tampa was also first in pain reliever consumption and third in consumption of energy drinks. Seattle still had the number one spot for highest coffee consumption which makes sense as it is home to Starbucks.
Although this survey only included 2,005 people, not a huge study by national standards, I still think these outcomes are useful in general terms. I think most people would not consider themselves addicted to caffeine. There are many people who really need their cup of "joe" in the morning. Not that it is a bad thing, one or two cups of coffee a day. (truth be told, I drink about 4 cups of decaf in the morning, sometimes half-caff) However, people forget about the hidden products which contain caffeine, albeit maybe not as high as energy drinks, but I know I would not have thought of pain relievers or eating a lot of chocolate.
For the record, residents of Riverside/San Bernardino, California, Atlanta, San Diego, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Dallas consumed the least amount of caffeine in the country, according to this poll.
In another interesting twist with high caffeine consumption, a study in the Journal of Personality and Individual Differences discusses high caffeine intake and the propensity to hallucinations. By "high," this is the equivalent of seven cups or more of instant coffee. In this study low caffeine users were equivalent to one cup or less of instant coffee--about 57 mg for one rounded teaspoon The study took into account caffeine products such as coffee, tea, soda, energy drinks, chocolate, and caffeine tablets.
Assessing both the caffeine consumption and stress levels, some participants had hallucinatory responses such as hearing voices or seeing things not there, and sensing the presence of dead people. Researchers think that because caffeine may possibly exacerbate the physiological response to stress, more of the stress hormone cortisol is produced, thus leading to a tendency to hallucinate. Though I don't have concrete numbers or specific information, I think this is still a good look into how nutrition and stress play a role on the body and mind.
One important thing to mention as the authors do indicate is that hallucinations aren't necessarily a sign of mental illnesses. Some people have brief bouts while other have them their entire lives. Personally, I've had those moments where I thought I was hearing a certain voice or seeing something that wasn't there. However, I'm not so sure if it was related to just coincidence, caffeine consumption (yes, I was once a caffeine junkie), food or sleep deprivation. Probably a combination of the last three, but I do remember a specific incidence not too long ago where I continued to hear music everywhere. That was bit unnerving and it really made me feel weird, but it did go away.
Related post: Should energy drinks be regulated?
Monday, April 21, 2008
It's a temporary problem
Okay, so, I'm trying to remind myself of the mantra that my plumbing problem is "just temporary." I think it's just the stress of everything that is making me feel like I want to break and sit and cry right now. I hate when it's just one problem right after another. Not only that, but I hate the fact that my plan for the week has now changed. I do not deal with spontaneous changes well. I know they happen, I live through them and all that, but it's just that it seems so unorderly, messy-like.
The two positives today are that my car is now fixed and the plumber did come by today. My car no is no longer making a crunch sound when I turn or has the ABS light on my dashboard. It's kind of funny, because I keep thinking it's going to make that awful crunch sound which I guess I had already habituated to, but then it's not there.
The plumber who is a friend of my landlord adjusted something, thinking that was going to fix the problem. Well, it didn't. I was not happy as everything backed right back into my tub which I had literally just cleaned and bleached. Now I have to wait another several hours for it to all dry, the water to go down and re-clean it. Not to mention that I have to rewash the towels I'd just washed again, but I can't use my washer. The plumber now realizes that the situation is worse than he thought and notified my landlord. I'm hoping maybe he'll have more clout with him since they are buddies.. I'd take the situation into my own hands, but my mother keeps telling me that it's may landlord's job. Right, I know. :sigh: This is when I think the forces of nature are really trying to tell me something. It's that, pure coincidence, or pissed off whatever high power there may be. Hopefully, I won't have any more posts like this, I'm just soooo frustrated and stressed, so please bear with me for now.
The two positives today are that my car is now fixed and the plumber did come by today. My car no is no longer making a crunch sound when I turn or has the ABS light on my dashboard. It's kind of funny, because I keep thinking it's going to make that awful crunch sound which I guess I had already habituated to, but then it's not there.
The plumber who is a friend of my landlord adjusted something, thinking that was going to fix the problem. Well, it didn't. I was not happy as everything backed right back into my tub which I had literally just cleaned and bleached. Now I have to wait another several hours for it to all dry, the water to go down and re-clean it. Not to mention that I have to rewash the towels I'd just washed again, but I can't use my washer. The plumber now realizes that the situation is worse than he thought and notified my landlord. I'm hoping maybe he'll have more clout with him since they are buddies.. I'd take the situation into my own hands, but my mother keeps telling me that it's may landlord's job. Right, I know. :sigh: This is when I think the forces of nature are really trying to tell me something. It's that, pure coincidence, or pissed off whatever high power there may be. Hopefully, I won't have any more posts like this, I'm just soooo frustrated and stressed, so please bear with me for now.
Plumbling problems part II
I'll just warn you now that this is more of a vent than anything else. I wrote about whenever I ran the laundry, it would back into my tub. I told my landlord about it, and he said he would look at it. I honestly do not think he did jack, because nothing is fixed. And now my problems are worse. The toilet keeps backing up. It overflowed on me three times on Friday. Luckily, that was just water.
On Saturday, I was so incredibly paranoid about it that I didn't use the bathroom for over 12 hours. Yes, not very healthy I know. Then this morning, I made a huge mistake. I HAD to go and my worst fear happened. The toilet did not overflow but almost. Then everything was just backing into both tubs. It was completely gross and awful. I bleached, sprayed, etc. the tubs and anything I used to clean up that mess and just pray that it slowly drains. I now have a thorough appreciation or what plumbers have to go through.
I called my landlord again this morning, and he said he would call the plumber. I called the plumber as well to no avail and left a message. This whole situation is so ridiculous. I know the septic tank problem and electrical problems hit my landlord hard financially, but isn't this his job when you have a tenant? In the six years, I've been here, I've hardly called him for any problems. I'm just so f*cking frustrated. I told my landlord that this really needed to be fixed, because I had company coming in a week in a half and the marathon is less than two weeks away. I'm completely mortified of the whole situation anyway, moire or less anyone who was a guest here having to deal with this problem.
I have not told my father about this situation, knowing he would have a bitchfitch about it and then tell me that I really needed to move from here (though sometimes I think this is some sort of sign). However, I'm tempted, only because people have a tendency to listen to him. Unfortunately, sometimes I think that it is mostly out of fear more than anything else. But at the same time, I want to be able to fight my own battles too.
:sigh: I'm just so completely stressed out over this. It makes me want to not eat for just the mere fact of not having to use facilities. Very stupid reason I know.
Well, I'm off to take my car to the shop. I'm hoping it's an easy fix, so I can have my car back quickly. I have a gazillion errands to do this week.
On Saturday, I was so incredibly paranoid about it that I didn't use the bathroom for over 12 hours. Yes, not very healthy I know. Then this morning, I made a huge mistake. I HAD to go and my worst fear happened. The toilet did not overflow but almost. Then everything was just backing into both tubs. It was completely gross and awful. I bleached, sprayed, etc. the tubs and anything I used to clean up that mess and just pray that it slowly drains. I now have a thorough appreciation or what plumbers have to go through.
I called my landlord again this morning, and he said he would call the plumber. I called the plumber as well to no avail and left a message. This whole situation is so ridiculous. I know the septic tank problem and electrical problems hit my landlord hard financially, but isn't this his job when you have a tenant? In the six years, I've been here, I've hardly called him for any problems. I'm just so f*cking frustrated. I told my landlord that this really needed to be fixed, because I had company coming in a week in a half and the marathon is less than two weeks away. I'm completely mortified of the whole situation anyway, moire or less anyone who was a guest here having to deal with this problem.
I have not told my father about this situation, knowing he would have a bitchfitch about it and then tell me that I really needed to move from here (though sometimes I think this is some sort of sign). However, I'm tempted, only because people have a tendency to listen to him. Unfortunately, sometimes I think that it is mostly out of fear more than anything else. But at the same time, I want to be able to fight my own battles too.
:sigh: I'm just so completely stressed out over this. It makes me want to not eat for just the mere fact of not having to use facilities. Very stupid reason I know.
Well, I'm off to take my car to the shop. I'm hoping it's an easy fix, so I can have my car back quickly. I have a gazillion errands to do this week.
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