Ever Been Stressed Out?

OK; show of hands.

How many times do we do everything in our power to avoid trouble like it’s an onslaught of the bubonic plague? Yup; thought so. Me too. I mean, who in their right mind purposely seeks out situations that test our very mettle to the core, you know?

Oh, sure; we all enjoy  occasional excitement. But I’m not talkin’ about intentional thrills, like skydiving, bungee-jumping, or thumb-wrestling. Those are all good for an adrenaline high, but they’re all something you do on purpose, you know?

I’m talkin’ about high-stress situations, and no, not the good kind. You know what I mean; the kind you get when your job is in jeopardy, your health goes south, something or other that’s important to you is in danger of completely cratering. Where the stress level registers 8.6 on the Richter scale. Yeah, that kind of stress.

The fact is, when it comes to life’s hard knocks, we try to avoid those as much as we can, right? We tend to seek safety and security, be it a bank account, a job, or even a relationship. Hey, it’s the way we’re wired.

So why is it, when we pretty much all spend most of our time seeking to avoid trials and tribulations, that unpleasant things still seem to seek, and yes, find us like the proverbial bullets with our names on them? And why are we so surprised when they do?

Well… I’m not going to tell you.

The fact is, this is my way of introducing our topic for the next What I Learned From… groupwrite project:

Yup; this time, we’re going to talk about stress (sound of terrified scream).

The fact is, stress is actually a pretty good school teacher, isn’t it? And I dare say we’ve all learned a thing or two about life, particularly when the stress levels were, shall we say, higher than we’d like.

Here’s your chance to share a life lesson or two with all of us, cause next Monday, October 6, we kick off the next WILF, and the title is What I Learned From Stress.

So get ready to grab the writing device of your choice, folks, and be prepared to tell us about something you learned from stress.

See ya then!

[Note: A tip o' the hat to my buddy Dennis McMullin for suggesting this topic. the fact is, I'd already picked it even before Hurricane Ike decided to breeze through the area. Ironic, eh?]

22 responses so far

22 Responses to “Ever Been Stressed Out?”

  1. Ulla Hennigon Sep 29th 2008 at 7:49 am

    Robert,
    what a terrific topic! I am really looking forward to reading the other contributions, and to write one myself.

    Ulla Hennigs last blog post..Silence and Peace

  2. Jackie Cameronon Sep 29th 2008 at 10:16 am

    Great topic! Most of my current stress comes from working to deadlines…so I will build more than enough time to write my post!

    Jackie Camerons last blog post..Fail to prepare – prepare to fail

  3. Jean Browman--Transforming Stresson Sep 29th 2008 at 1:12 pm

    Needless to say, I’m in!

    Jean Browman–Transforming Stresss last blog post..Tapping…A Surprisingly Powerful Tool

  4. Robert Hruzekon Sep 29th 2008 at 7:40 pm

    @Ulla – Yup; I think this may be perhaps the most ubiquitous of topics so far. Which is a ten-dollar word that means “been there, done that!”

  5. Robert Hruzekon Sep 29th 2008 at 7:41 pm

    @Jackie – Glad to hear you’re relatively stress free. Deadlines are generally my stress-makers, too, so I know how you feel. :-\

  6. Robert Hruzekon Sep 29th 2008 at 7:42 pm

    @Jean – There would have really been no excuse for you to skip this one, Jean! ;-)

  7. The Kingon Sep 29th 2008 at 9:01 pm

    Yeah, I wish I was stress free. School work pretty much contributes to all my stress right now. It seems insane, but I’m sure I will realize it was nothing once I get out in the real world in a few years.

    The Kings last blog post..Earn Easy Money With CashCrate

  8. Robert Hruzekon Sep 30th 2008 at 6:42 am

    Oh, I don’t know. You may be blessed enough to manage a career that allows you time to, you know, breathe every now and then. Or maybe not. But ultimately it’s up to you how you want to run your life. My advice: decide now, not then. I promise it’ll make things easier.

  9. Karen Putzon Sep 30th 2008 at 10:31 am

    Stress? What stress? :)

    Karen Putzs last blog post..What I Learned from my Homebirth

  10. Robert Hruzekon Sep 30th 2008 at 10:52 am

    Uh-huh. Right. :-D

  11. Vicky Hon Sep 30th 2008 at 12:13 pm

    I’m not stressed anymore, thanks to Robert, I just banged my head against the ‘puter screen 6 times.

    I will be back tomorrow and everyday this week to eleviate my stress. Thanks for the quick kit.

    Now I’m off to find some aspirin for my headache. :-) It never ends … stress… headache… stress… headache… vicious cycle.

  12. Robert Hruzekon Sep 30th 2008 at 1:06 pm

    Hey, I’m here for ya, Vicky! It really does my heart good to be so… helpful.

  13. Wilson Ponon Oct 3rd 2008 at 8:40 am

    I don’t know whether it’s an odd habit or not, as everytime when I’m stressed out, I will release my tension by simply squeeze on a stress ball lol

    By the way, Robert. This stress reduction kit seems to be very effective and I will surely try it out…

  14. I Heart Friday! | Words For Hireon Oct 3rd 2008 at 12:00 pm

    [...] a bad idea. Robert Hruzek decided to embrace the Stress and asks us to write about it in his latest What I Learned From Project.  The Deep Friar waxed poetic about the Solar System. It was educational and entertaining and well [...]

  15. Robert Hruzekon Oct 3rd 2008 at 5:37 pm

    Hey, good luck with that, Wilson. Lemme know how it works out. But (and this is very important to remember), if you knock yerself silly, it’s not my fault!

  16. Rika Susan's Juicing Funon Oct 4th 2008 at 4:11 am

    Oh, how I love this topic! Life and stress seem to go hand in hand, but we can do a lot to make sure that stress doesn’t rule our lives. Attitude and expectations play a huge role in this. I am housebound due to a chronic illness and simply had to learn to minimize stress and maximize coping strategies. Many lessons learned along the way…

    Thanks for a great website with lots of food for thought. Will be back…

    Rika Susan’s Juicing Funs last blog post..Don’t Stop At Healthy Fruit Or Vegetable Juicing Recipes! Try More Healthy Recipes

  17. Robert Hruzekon Oct 4th 2008 at 7:54 am

    Thanks for stopping by, Rika, and I hope you join us next week for the What I Learned From Stress Challenge!

  18. [...] is a contribution to the October “what I learned from Stress” Group Writing Project, organized by Robert [...]

  19. What I learned from stress - Luke Gedeonon Oct 4th 2008 at 10:51 pm

    [...] is that time of month again, and Robert Hruzek says that this month we are going to learn a lot from stress. The problem is that I have never [...]

  20. [...] month’s topic for Robert Hruzek’s writing challenge is What I Learned From Stress. Hey, I can do that. I mean, I have an entire blog devoted to the [...]

  21. What I’ve Learned From Stress On Tuesdayson Jan 16th 2010 at 5:41 pm

    [...] concerning work and faith.  This week Robert Hzurek of Middle Zone Musings is leading a series on What I’ve Learned From Stress.  It’s kind of like a synchroblog of sorts.  If you blog, feel free to join in too.  I [...]

  22. What I’ve Learned From Stress On Mondayson Jan 16th 2010 at 5:41 pm

    [...] concerning work and faith.  This week Robert Hzurek of Middle Zone Musings is leading a series on What I’ve Learned From Stress.  It’s kind of like a synchroblog of sorts.  If you blog, feel free to join in too.  I [...]

LEAVING A REPLY:

Say, do us all a favor, won't you? We’re fairly easy-going around these here parts, but please do NOT enter a keyword phrase or a business, product or service name as YOUR name in the comment section. It will likely get your comment labeled as spam and deleted. You MAY, however, use a real name, nickname or handle, along with a brief identifying phrase, such as "Big Bubba, Midnight Cowboy." Thanks a herd, and a tip o’ the hat to ya! - Ed.