Ivy says:
One of our bestest commenters, Mom of 3 asked this in the comments of this post:
It’s not the money that’s killing me right now, it’s the stress. I need an article on that. How do you deal with the stress of an emergency situation when it comes on the heels of a previous stressful event?
Well, I have a few ideas, and I’m sure our lovely commenters have some great ideas as well. First, look at things in perspective for a second, and be glad there’s not money issues on top of your other issues. My dad has always said, “Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it can sure buy away an awful lot of unhappiness.” Basically, knowing your basic needs are met and not having to struggle for those is a great blessing, so count that among your blessings, then go ahead and count your other blessings as well.
Now, for me, my one no-fail de-stresser is not for everyone. I thought I’d mention it anyway, though, since it really does help me relax- a spa pedicure. My mom vomits at the thought of other people touching her feet, but to me, being able to sink my feet in warm bubbly water and letting someone else totally take care of me is heaven. Around here they run about 30 bucks plus a tip, and are worth every last penny. Bring something to read or something else to do, and just drift off into your happy place while they pamper you.
I don’t always have time for or can’t afford a pedicure, so the next best thing is to put myself in “time out.” I tell the kids I am absolutely not to be bothered for the next (hour, half hour, whatever time I have available) and I close the door to my bedroom, put on my headphones, and relax while listening to music. If I explain carefully to my oldest kid that I’m about to lose it and I need this time, he usually is really cool and takes care of the smaller kids and keeps them out.
Finally, there’s yoga. I’m too cheap for a class, so I either do yoga with my Wii Fit or else I use a video. (On Demand has them under Sports and Fitness, if you happen to have Comcast with On Demand.) Make sure you don’t stress yourself by getting irate if you can’t do a pose perfectly. At first when I started doing yoga, I would get all irate when I couldn’t do a pose the way it was presented to me. The more yoga you do, the better you’ll get at the poses. Don’t forget to breathe deeply and relax! Yoga has become one of the great centering points in my life, I highly recommend everyone who tends toward being stressed to include it in their lives.
So, Home Eccers, what do you do when you’re about to be pushed over the edge?
I just started a hula hoop class - that's fun, I'm terrible at it so it takes a lot of focus.
I like to read, and watch movies too. Exercise helps a lot.
(Just got diagnoses with crohns, I have skin cancer, and we are coming off 3 years of truly amazing stressors, including a house fire, that displaced us and lost jobs.)
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