Stop Stressing

Stress can be defined as a state of worry or mental tension caused by a difficult situation. I know I have written about this topic before, but I feel compelled to address it again. Stress is a normal reaction to the pressures of everyday life but can become unhealthy when it upsets your daily functioning. And this stress I have placed on myself has definitely achieved that goal in upsetting me. I don't know why I do this to myself, maybe it's because I am a perfectionist at times and don't want to mess up. Some might even say, it's the Virgo in me, but I don't really pay attention to astrology or zodiac signs like that. At the writing of this blog on May 10th, I am stressing for a blessing.

My dad who is absolutely afraid of flying, promised my baby Sienna that he would attend her graduation from Howard University in DC, and let's just say the days leading up to this day have been stressful for me. My dad has always been a man of his word, so I don't know why this event caused me so much irritation. My dad tends to lose track of time especially when he is on a job and working diligently. So, for the purpose of this trip, I called him almost every day, as if I was his countdown clock to remind him of how many days we have until departure. Each time I spoke with him I could tell in his voice he was not happy, but he was going, nonetheless. Anytime I called to remind him how many days we have left for the flight, he would assure me that he's coming. I reminded him to call and get his meds refilled and to make a list of things so he wouldn't forget anything. I could tell he was bothered just a little about my constant calls on that subject but was always happy to hear my voice.

There are four main types of stress: physical, mental, behavioral, and emotional. Let's just say, my mental stress was on 1000, which caused me to be super emotional and stress out over something that hasn't even happened yet. My mind was going over so many scenarios that weren't beneficial to this trip. When I called him the morning of at 0700, he told me he was on his way to a job and assured me he would be on the way home by 10am so he could get his stuff ready. Tell me why I called him at 10:30 and he tells me, he's not leaving that job until 11am. I had to talk to myself out loud and tell me to "stop stressing!" I said to him, "Dad, you need to be here at 1pm." His response to me was, "what did I tell you, I will be there a minute before one." All I could do was take him at his word. This was very hard for me to do especially knowing how he can get caught up in what he is doing. So, what did I do? I called him at 11:45am to see his status and he was on his way home from the job. He told me that I was making him feel like he was on parole with the number of calls. I laughed and he laughed, and I said, "I don't care, I am just making sure you are enroute and will be here before one."

Can I tell you he didn’t get to my house until 1:15 pm? I had to keep telling myself. All was well and everything will be fine. We didn’t get to the airport until 2pm and then got held up at TSA! But thank you God, we made it! All of the stressing I put myself through didn’t help me one bit. It actually probably caused 10 more grey hairs to appear.

I say all that to say this, most often times things are beyond our control. There was nothing I could do that would make him move differently. I had to accept the fact that he does things differently and it will be fine. The bible tells us in Philippians 4:6-7 no to worry so much about everything. We are to pray, ask God for what we need with a grateful heart and God’s peace which surpasses human comprehension will guard our hearts and keep our minds right. Always remember that we can only control ourselves and how we handle situations. God got the rest.

Sending you love, light and positive vibes,

Cassie K.

#SayItOnSunday

"Always remember to LIVE life to the fullest, LAUGH at everything and to LOVE unconditionally!"