Stress Test

“Stress is nothing more than a socially acceptable form of mental illness.” ~Richard Carlson, American author, psychotherapist, and motivational speaker (1961-2006)

It was a lump. Allison didn’t want to admit it, but she couldn’t deny its existence. She had checked and double checked, but it was definitely there. Her regular cursory check in the shower had discovered it and the doctor’s exam had confirmed it. The mammogram, which the doctor had scheduled immediately, was still several weeks away.

Allison started to take stock of her life. Her personal spirituality emphasized the importance of cultivating a good attitude and positive action as opposed to allowing the negative stresses of her life to have their way. As she contemplated the previous several months a realization came to her. She had been allowing the stress of daily living to weigh upon her. Small slights had bloomed into significant offenses. Irritations which in the past would have gone unnoticed were now sticking to her like a bur on a cocker spaniel.

It was time to start dumping the bad karma. Over the next several weeks she conscientiously went about eliminating stress in her life. Sometimes she avoided certain situations or people. Other times she had to rely on exercise, yoga or meditation. Whatever it took, she did it. Gradually she could feel herself unwind.

The day came for the mammogram. The test was incredibly uncomfortable. Whoever described it as having a piece of glass laid across your chest and a truck parked on top of it got it right. She waited anxiously for the results. Finally the clinician called her.

When she came to her in the waiting room the clinician seemed perplexed. “I’m not sure how to tell you this, but we can’t find a lump…anywhere.” “We’ve checked and double checked, but we can’t find anything.” We have no explanation.” “We suggest you check in with your doctor again in six months.”

Allison thanked the woman, shrugged on her jacket and headed for the door. She smiled to herself: “They may not have an explanation, but I sure do,” she mused.

Our lives can be very toxic. Not simply because of pollutants in our air or bacteria in our water, but because of the lives we live. Our lives seem filled with toxic events, toxic people, toxic jobs and toxic relationships. Some of us even have toxic commutes. Just like free radicals in our circulatory system we carry hurts, fear and resentments around with us. This emotional debris divides our attention, drains our energy and steals our happiness even when nothing bad is happening at the moment.

It is as if we were dragging a bag of rocks around with us. These rocks are laden with latent emotion. Some are old and slimly because they have been held onto for a very long time. Some are new, perhaps still hot from a recent argument.

At times when we are not already sufficiently unhappy we take a rock from the bag and examine it, thereby conjuring up anew all the raw negative emotion of an old event. Professional counselors call this technique, “wearing a groove in your head” the result of reliving negative experiences over and over again.

Being good stewards of ourselves means eliminating the toxicity from our lives. The answer is to empty the rocks from our bag. The answer is simple, but doing so is not so simple. It may mean letting go of a resentment, making an amends, asking for forgiveness, extricating ourselves from a toxic job or relationship, receiving counseling to discover the source of latent fears, or simply taking time to relax.

Detoxify your life. Our life is a gift from God and we are called to care for ourselves just as much as we are to care for others. Drop the rocks! Get rid of the bag! Don't let your mind bully your body into believing it must carry the burden of its worries (Astrid Alauda).

Dear God: When I am stressed help me focus on you.

“It ain’t what ya eat what gives ya ulcers, it’s what eats you.” ~unknown

© 2011 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.

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