STRESS STRESS STRESS!!

     I'll keep this blog post very, very short since I'm still recovering from writing those super long Spring Break posts. It seems that despite my optimism about having my battery recharged following my return from Blueridge, I actually had the inverse effect. Instead of coming in refreshed, ready to tackle new challenges, I had instead overwhelmed myself very suddenly as I realized exactly how many responsibilities and expectations I had placed on myself in an effort to be the best me I can be.

    It's not something I'm super excited to admit, but these stressful thoughts led to a lot of anxiety, so much so that for most of this week, I had trouble sleeping more than 2-3 hours each night, since I couldn't clear my mind from all the thoughts and worries that swirled around in my head. Finally, at around 4 AM one night, I got out of bed (since I wasn't sleeping anytime soon anyways) and started jotting down every thought and worry I had on my mind on sticky notes. I had three different colors, so I organized it into different levels of importance/urgency: pink notes representing things I need to do, blue notes representing things I should do, and yellow notes representing things I want to do. By the time I was finished jotting down my thoughts, I placed them on my wall, creating a sort of visual representation of my mind and the thoughts that weighed it down.

    Oddly enough, seeing all of my worries organized and visually represented felt validating to me. Sure, I knew I had placed a lot of responsibilities on myself, but I would always dismiss myself as me overthinking about stuff, and that my anxiety and stress was stupid. No, actually. Seeing it all laid out, I absolutely was justified in being stressed. But simply knowing that it was okay to be stressed seemed to be enough to calm my mind and allow me to sleep that night.

    I guess what I want to say with this post is that it is okay to be stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed. You should never invalidate your own feelings, and chances are that those feelings are valid anyways. All it takes sometimes is to acknowledge that yes, you are stressed, you are overwhelmed, and by simply recognizing your own struggle, you might be able to calm yourself a little bit. It's not like all of these sticky notes and their corresponding issues disappeared overnight, but at the very least, some of the stress associated with them did. I recommend you try it too!

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