ANXIETY

I was stressed! Why?

The Frontier Nursing Service, although my dream job, knocked me for a loop from time to time. Read this excerpt from my book to learn what happened:

“The patient lived. My CPR (cardio pulmonary resuscitation) got his heart going again. An IV and the right meds plus oxygen kept his heart going. My heart eventually slowed down to normal, and I carried on with the shift. I looked and acted the same on the outside, but I was changed forever on the inside.

The inner confidence and contentment of the morning as I headed to work, was shaken. Doubts crept in. My sense of control teetered.

Sure, the patient lived. But he could have died. Do I really want to deal with this kind of stress? What’s going to happen next? Whatever does, will I be able to handle it?

How did I deal with my new rocky interior? Did I say a prayer of thanks to God? Did I ask God to help me? Did I acknowledge that He was really in control? No! That night back in my room, I cowered miserably in my rocking chair, a jar of peanut butter on my lap. I don’t remember how long I spooned peanut butter directly from the jar into my mouth. Peanut butter for comfort? It eased my anxiety. Instant gratification. I was in control of the jar and the spoon. That felt good.”

Questions for you:

What do you do to relieve stress?

What would you recommend to others as a successful strategy for relieving stress?