Stress is tricksy, precious.
I had an epiphany the other day after meeting with a number of colleagues and friends.
I’ve been stressed about finances through most of August and into the beginning of September. Things have been incredibly tight recently. While I have been doing workshops, I’m still working on landing more one-on-one coaching clients. Funds were getting tight, like there's no more skin on my teeth to hold onto tight.
Usually, I carry my stress in my shoulders and, sometimes, in my jaw. I really wasn’t feeling any of that. There’s the rub: if you’re looking for stress where it normally appears, it may not be showing up how you expect.
As we know, the brain is designed to protect us from danger. While I may have been saying “everything’s going to be okay,” my brain was freaking out about my financial situation. Instead of sending stress to my shoulders or jaw, that’s when the stories started:
Some days, I was questioning the path I’m on. Is it time to throw in the towel? Drop this idea of growing my coaching practice?
Other days, the brain was throwing logical stories my way: “You’ve been at this for three years. What do you have to show for it?”
At other times, I found my temper a little short. My decision-making ability was shaky.
A few things have come together recently, and that stress has been relieved. It’s given me the opportunity to reflect.
Here are a few things I now recognize:
Stress has many different faces and reasons for being.
Like Gollum, stress can be tricksy.
When we're stressed, we want to find the easy solution.
Stress can feel and appear differently than before. Just when you recognize how stress shows up, she’s bought a new dress.
When we’re the most challenged, when things are tough, when we are stressed, that’s when the stories the brain tells us are the loudest. The Imposter? The Critic? The Judge? Any of those other voices in our head? Stress gives them an open soapbox to express their ideas.
If you have a dream, a Big Dream, something you believe in with every atom of your being, hang in there. Know that you’ll have ups and downs, that there are times when the stories are loud. Remember what you got you started, why you feel in love with your Big Dream, what about your Big Dream excited you the most. Hold onto that.