How Do You Cope With Stress?

I'll admit it...I've never been very good at coping with stress.

Do you ever have times when everything that could go wrong seems to go wrong at once? Yesterday was a day like that for me. It was an insane week at work and a cold, rainy drive home. But I'd made it to Friday night...time for the flannel pj's, a good book, and some time to regroup.

I was comfortably nestled in my big chair in front of the fireplace, feet up on the ottoman, a new Patricia Cornwell mystery open to Chapter One...

When the phone rang.

 "Hi. This is Lori from Home Health calling about your mother." Well, if you're a Boomer like me, caring for elderly parents, you already know that a phone call that starts out like that on a Friday night isn't going to be a good one. As it turned out, Mom was OK and, after an hour or so, I settled back into my chair with a cup of hot tea to see who Kay Scarpetta was going to find murdered next...

When the phone rang again.

 "Hello. This is Diana from your daughter's group home. Just need to let you know that the power is out here. A line is down, and we may need to evacuate the residents. Should we call you to come pick your daughter up if the power is not restored soon?" Down went the book and off came the flannel pj's as I quickly dressed again and transformed into Super-Mom mode.

Before I got out the door, the phone rang yet again. The power at the group home was back on...no need to go out in the rain and pick up DH for the night. By now, the basket of wine in the dining room was beginning to look pretty good! But it was almost eleven o'clock, my tea was cold, and I decided to try a more primitive coping strategy...jump into bed and pull the covers over my head. 

With the sunlight streaming into my bedroom this morning, I thought about the many ways we women manage to cope with the stress of everyday life.

Calling a friend and sharing horror stories seems to work pretty well.

My sister, Nancy, was my best friend. She was always the first person I called when things got crazy. She knew me so well that she just "got it". She'd let me rant for awhile and then manage to get me laughing hysterically as we relived the wackiness of it all. I miss being able to a call her.

So, instead, I blog. Do you sometimes find that reaching out on your blog is like talking to an old friend?

Of course, junking is a great stress reliever too. I don't even have to buy anything...just surrounding myself with rusty old things for a few hours seems to do the trick.

Sorting is a good stress reliever too. I can spend hours all alone in my craft room just sorting buttons...or collage supplies...or fabric...and be perfectly content.

Sewing something by hand seems to calm me down. Somehow it makes me feel connected to other generations of women who lived in a simpler time.

Rearranging is another favorite coping strategy. By the time I have tried four or five different mantle arrangements, I have forgotten all about whatever it was that was bothering me.

The experts say that exercise is a good way to relieve stress...I prefer any coping strategy that does not involve spandex or sweat.

So now that I've had a day of shopping, rearranging, chilling in my craft room, and blogging, I'm feeling sane again...and curious...

How do you cope with stress?