Laughter is the Best Medicine
Ever think… One day we will look back on this and laugh? My suggestion is to do your best to laugh at that moment, when you most need that response, rather than waiting until a later time. Laughter can sure relieve the pressure valve when tension and frustration levels are heightened.
When we get overwhelmed our survival behaviors surface and we are at great risk for getting into a power struggle with anyone in our path. These behaviors look different for every person. Some individuals explode and go on a ranting tangent, while others retreat and simply implode. Of course, once you discover your pattern, you are in a better position to recognize it and respond accordingly.
My survival behaviors kicked in at the start of the weekend when all forces converged and I discovered a mountain of contracts, proposals, handouts and other forms to be completed, a backlog of products needing to be mailed, and a never-ending stream of emails requiring responses. As expected, I went into “task completion” mode, but tried to avoid my habitual patterns of “barking” commands (my son’s words) and filling our house with Eeyore’s little black rain clouds. I did my best to contain the “crazy” and not let it spill out on to the people around me.
I have now made it through the ugly part of the storm and am mostly caught up, thanks to never-ending help from Lee Anne, my office manager. Upon reflection, the response that helped me survive the stress, more than anything else, was a healthy dose of laughter. I looked for the humor in the situation, which really helped me adjust my perspective and take things in stride. I suggest you do the same, as I have found out, at least for me, laughter really does seem to be the best medicine after all.