Let me imagine you naked!

Nope that hasn't helped at all ;-)

Public speaking, albeit in a virtual non-real-time text-based way, is still public presentation. And any public appearance can be stressful.

But we're not here to talk about that. I just wanted to highlight the fact that there are all sorts of stress, that we all suffer from.

For instance, right here, right now, for me; there are some very clever people on here. My peers. My fans My feud clans and of course the usual collection of Internet trolls. See, you thought you had problems. Bah ;-)

(Just in case you were needing some tips for public presentation, please see the end.)

But also as an "atom" in society, I also have a value, a worth, an opinion, a desire to help others and an ethos to fight against error, mind control, other peoples agenda taught as doctrine, and so on.

We all suffer from stress. Some show it way more than others. Some seem to have more of it and to a higher level than others, or is that because some show it more than others again?!

But who ever you are, however uptight you may or may not be, stress is a reaction. It's our own reaction to a situation. Or more importantly what we "perceive"

I think of myself as a relaxed happy guy. If I had a web cam, you would normally see me smiling. I'm even genuinely smiling now. I'm not normally stressed. I seldom swear. I've never been in a physical fight. I don't get off my head on drugs or alcohol.

Yet come Christmas day (well the entire of Christmas season really) and all of my insecurities, inadequacies, family, friends and relationship cobwebs, all come to the surface, like an erupting volcano. Not until New Years day is over, can I get back to business. To me. To my role as an atom in the universe.

New Years Day is also a great time of reflection. Of counting up the disasters. Of going bright red and physically shaking, as a pent up reaction to the previous 365 days of my cock-ups and failures.

That sounds more like depression than stress of course. But stress and depression are blood brothers anyway.

For me, depression is when you can't be bothered to worry or act upon a problem. (The first stage of suicide, as I lovingly term it.)

For me, stress is when you think you need to do something about it, but can't or don't know what or how. As you know yourself, you spend more time and energy worrying and plotting and thinking what "could" happen. The things that might go wrong. The "what-ifs".

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• next page >>

---

Add your voice

Know something about Ways to cope with stress?
We want to hear your view. Write now!