Quick fixes for stress
 

Hey all, I'm in the middle of Day Five now and, as I had feared, my stressful job has me thinking about hiding from everyone around me. I know all too well that this feeling is usually followed by a binge after work.

Does anyone have some advice about what I could do in the next couple of hours to get re-centered and focused on my job? I think that I'm going to out for a walk shortly, but for a couple of reasons this is going to be a tough night.

Thanks for your help, everyone.

I can relate. Also had a stressful job that made getting sober "interesting". Not sure if it will help but I used to get some comfort by reminding myself that it was a good day as long as I did not drink. No matter what else happened at work, as long as I dealt with it without drinking then the results were okay. At least work wasn't going to kill me. Drinking was.
Wishing you peace and comfort.

I've asked this question myself. I'm not sure there are any really quick fixes. There is no replacement for learning good coping strategies to help you manage stress better.

I like what Happier said though :) Certainly in the early days of my recovery I felt that if I got through a work day without breaking down or snapping at someone and came out of the other side sober then that was a success.

In the short term all I could do was say the serenity prayer over and over, count to 10, drink tons of chamomile tea...

On day 5 I think you should cut yourself some slack and be proud of what you have achieved so far :) Well done!

If there's one piece of advice I'd give you, it's exercise. You have to make yourself do it. Walk for 5 min around the block, briskly, breathe deeply. Although in my first week of sobriety, I was soooo tired. I shut my office door and napped on the floor. Seriously. That's my second piece of advice - take it easy on yourself. I had a plan and was all set to do all these things. What I didn't realize was that exhaustion was going to set in. So instead of my planned action packed days, I allowed myself to nap, go to bed really early. Just whatever suited my fancy. Just don't drink.

Walking is such a great way to relieve stress.

Just looking at my two Siamese cats relieves stress for me.

Getting involved in a good book or movie.

Music, lots of music.

Thanks to all of you for your ideas. I don't think I used the right wording when I asked for a "quick fix," rather I'm just looking for things to do when I reach that state of stress. As for hiding from people, I think there's good hiding like walking and listening to music and bad hiding, like going home with a couple of bottles.

I knew today was going to be tough. My co-workers - - a couple in particular - - are not nice people and have been actively working to make my life difficult for some months now. I have come to realize that drinking only increases the power that their destructive words and actions have over me. The more time that has passed from that last drink five days ago, the more self-aware I have become.

I got away from my desk and took a long walk in the park. I listened to a few of my favorite tunes, and when I felt like I could cope better with what was happening, I got back to work.

It's going to take a while before these more healthy coping mechanisms take hold but I am committed to learning them and replacing them with the misery I was subjecting myself to! Thanks to all of you for your words of encouragement.

Blue I'm with you there, the stress tonight at work is driving me nuts. I just keep coming out to the courtyard here and reading post on SR that has been making it more bearable.

xa-speakers.org take a listen to someone's story, even if you aren't an AA'er. It gives me hope and reminds me why I don't drink any more.

Best wishes,

Hang in there, BlueRain. This will keep getting easier for both of us. For all of us!

I'm glad you clarified cos I don't think there's a quick fix :)

What helped me was first was accepting I work best in balance...I need 'me time' to perform at my best.

There's no argument on that.

I've been a lazy bum, and a workaholic, and both ways nearly killed me.
We have to find a middle road.

Exercise is good like others have said...playing or listening to music works for me too :)

I also had to learn to prioritize. There is always stuff that's not as important...if you can't delegate, leave it until you hit that point in your priority list.

I looked at my expectations - and asked myself are they too high?
If it's other peoples expectations that are too high...then maybe you need to look at your job situation?

Hope you find some answers :)

D

Yoga is really helping me right now. Remember when they used to say take a deep breath and count to ten? Well, that really works, but you have to do it over and over for real results.

I practiced yoga very regularly before I started abusing alcohol intensely. I wish I had never stopped because if I had, I might never succumbed to alcoholism. I had not really done any yoga in 15 + years. I now take a class once a week (just started about a month ago) and I spend anywhere from 5 minutes to 20 minutes to 1 hr at home doing simple postures just on my own outside of class. Even if I do not have time to do poses, I do breathing and simple stretching daily even if it is just the first few minutes when I awaken and/or when I am feeling stressed. (you can even do standing postures in the bathroom at work! (yes, I have done it!))

I highly recommend simple yogic deep breathing combined with simple, restorative poses--my favorites are the standing forward bend and "legs up the wall". You can google these and they are contraindicated for any health condition that I know of (check with your dr if you have any health issues!)

The simplest help, and the simplest of yogic breathing is to exhale longer than you inhale. Inhale for 4 counts, hold for 5 counts, and exhale for 6 counts. Keep extending the exhale until you can comfortably inhale for 4, hold for 5 and exhale for 8 counts. It takes some time to learn and you don't want to go too fast until your lung capacity is ready, but it is really, really relaxing. Keep doing it until your tension releases.

Hope this helps. I wish you a quiet mind, an easy body and joyful dreams!