I know that stress will always be a part of my life. I will never be stress-free, but I have gotten used to a certain level of stress as my baseline. And while I do struggle sometimes with that baseline stress level, it’s usually pretty manageable with different tricks and tools that I use. But this week, a lot of stress is hitting me at the same time and it’s really starting to affect me.
The first thing related to stress isn’t one that I can control. We are having some weather that causes me extra pain. This isn’t anything new for me, but it’s always frustrating when it happens. I can manage this with painkillers and other over-the-counter things, and as you are reading this I have already had an appointment with a new orthopedic surgeon so I might have some new information about how my hips are doing. I’m always open to trying different things to make this pain easier to deal with. But it’s also something that just adds to my life that I have to work through.
I’m also stressed about getting on a flight very soon. I haven’t been on a plane in quite some time. I already don’t like to fly and I know that it can cause me anxiety or bring on panic attacks. And flying now, even though the pandemic isn’t as bad as it was before, is still a higher-risk thing to do. I know that masks aren’t required on planes anymore, but I will be wearing a high-quality mask myself to make sure that I am staying as safe as I could. I know that plenty of people have gone on planes, both with and without a mask, and have been fine and didn’t get sick. But with all the precautions I’ve been taking for so long, this is just one more thing that is adding a bit of worry to my week. And because I’ve got my regular anxiety as well, it’s more than I’m used to dealing with for flying.
Traveling is a bit exciting since I haven’t really gone anywhere since 2019 other than places that are within about a 90-minute drive. But it’s also something else that is taking up time that I have to get ready for. I need to pack and see what I still need to get, especially since I don’t have many travel-sized toiletries. I don’t think doing that is too stressful, but it’s still time in my day when I don’t have a lot of free time to begin with. I’m trying to focus more on being excited for my brief escape from LA so it’s more positive stress than negative stress.
And because of all this extra stress this week, I’m dealing with a very minor cold. I have done a few Covid tests already to make sure it’s not Covid, and it might actually be dealing with allergies and not a cold. I don’t necessarily feel sick, just a bit congested and I’m sneezing a bit more than normal. No matter what the reason why I’m feeling this way, I know that having extra stress causes your immune system to be a bit weaker than normal so it’s easier to catch something. I’m going to test again for Covid before I have to fly to double check, but since I’ve already tested negative a few times and I don’t have too many symptoms, I feel pretty certain that it’s something else right now.
I know that usually when I have stressful things happening they do tend to pile up. And that’s exactly what’s going on right now. But all of these new stresses are very temporary and hopefully, within a week or two, I’ll be back to my normal baseline stress levels.
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