STRESS......we all handle it differently. Stress comes in different forms, affects each person uniquely and its remedy is different for each situation. Studies have shown that men and women process stress differently and we know that the affects of stress vary according to age. This morning I was in a public waiting area and from somewhere in the building came the signal that a baby was highly stressed. Another woman remarked to me that "someone isn't very happy", to which I replied, "Sometimes I wish I could express myself that way and get away with it!"
Stress relievers range from quiet solitude to clubbing and dancing to wild, pulsating beats. D'ffrent strokes for d'ffrent folks, yet every human needs a release and a relief valve in order to shedd the negative effects that stress places on the body. Some people find food to be a remedy. (I fall into this category.) For food "users, it may be one kind of food or it may be "see-food". Whatever food you see becomes the food of choice to be the release valve. Logic does not enter into this kind of stress-release, nor is the relief long-lived. Guilt soon settles in, often to be relieved by......you guessed it.....more eating. Other people deal with stress by not eating. How this is possible is unfathomable to me.
This morning was a wee bit stressful, although why I cannot identify. All I know is that by the time I arrived home my inner stress level was a wee bit high and food of any kind was calling to me. (Of course, it did not help that I had not eaten breakfast.) I walked into my office and instantly knew I had found my solution - an unopened box of candy given to Capt. Cook and I. I ripped off the gift wrapping and cellophane covering the box and lifted the top. There, in front of me, were one dozen milk-chocolate turtle candies. As I reached for one, a television character came to mind - Brenda Leigh Johnson from TNT's "The Closer", perfectly played by actress Kyra Sedgwick. Brenda Leigh has a chocolate addiction and she can often be seen opening a desk drawer to reach in for a piece of chocolate of some type. Seated or standing, she'll bring it to her lips, take a savoring bite while closing her eyes, and the relief in her countenance is palpable.
That was me today. While the first bite drew the same reaction from me as Brenda Leigh, subsequent bites fortunately revealed a much-too-sweet taste. I ate one in its entirety and then promptly marched down to Capt. Cook's office and turned over the entire box to him but that first bite was so very satisfying. Like popping a balloon with a pin, my stress was relieved.
Brenda Leigh gets it.
Ancora imparo
