Stress!

Off-topic
1

I think its really starting to affect me now… :crazy:

cant sleep at night, wake up at stupid o clock and want to sleep but minds racing away, when i start to fall asleep its time to get up for work/uni… :doze:

for the first time in absolutely ages ive started getting panic attacks…

just need some sort of way to overcome it, but at the moment i just scream at everyone like my disk is stuck on extreme pms mode… :crazy:

riding the bike is still fun but loosing concentration makes me think ill be taking the cage for awhile e.g. tues knocked off a car mirror filtering… fri almost got taken out by a rubbish lorry coming straight at me, he decided to swerve i didnt cos i just didnt hav enough time to react… :w00t:

i dont want aww take it easy, i want things that will work… i dont have time to go to the doctors and talk it through, ive got a work load piling up and xmas looks like it wil b s**t…

PLEASE HELP ME SLEEP!! :crying:

2

As much as it sounds like the most obvious thing to do you have to learn to switch off, none of this stuff is worth getting so stressed about that you can’t sleep properly and therefore you put yourself at risk whilst riding to work/uni, it’s not life or death so just chill out…

Plan ahead if you have Uni work to complete for a deadline and stick to the plan, and think about what’s the worst that could happen if you don’t complete something on time? They’ll probably make you do it again which gives you more time, and you won’t have to do all of it again as I would guess 60-70% of it would already be correct, you’ll just have to concentrate on the last 30% to meet the criteria they are after, which should be perfectly doable, you’re 22 and shouldn’t be getting this stressed about life, you have plenty of time to get it right and achieve all that you want to do in life, you just have to be patient.

If you have a more relaxed attitude to everything you’ll actually get more done in less time and without being so wound up… :slight_smile:

Failing that I find alcohol helps me sleep, although I can’t get up in the morning! :wink:

If you need to talk just PM me and I’ll give you my number.

3

i am trying to switch off… but its just not happening… if it not work problems, its money, if not money then family, if not family then it uni and then back around to work…

i made the sound decision to stop on the bike jus til i sort myself out a lil more… dont wana put anyone at risk, x

4

Sounds like you need to tackle one issue at a time, try prioritising what you see as problems, then maybe categorising them into high/life threatening, medium/financial risk and then low/manageable…I’m sure you’ll soon see that actually they are not as big a deal as you first thought…

If they’re financial issues are they really that big a deal? Most finance problems can be solved with a sensible chat and some planning.

If it’s family issues are you trying to be too much to too many people? Are you thinking about your well being and have you put yourself first, or are you trying to do the right thing all the time when people aren’t doing the right thing by you?

If it’s pressure of work/uni then as I said plan ahead and if that’s not working talk to someone about your work load, I have a habit of trying to do everything myself when actually if I ask for help or delegate work I can easily reduce my work load, I’m just not good at asking when I really should.

5

aw thanks tim… will try!!

im looking for the person that is worse off than me… theres gotta b one out there :smiley:

6

You’re welcome, oh and believe me there is always someone worse of than you, try reading some John Pilger/Mark Curtis books, that should help you plant you’re feet firmly on the ground, as much as it feels good on a personal level to know that your problems are not so big after all, it makes you realise just how lucky you/we are, even with all the day to day cr@p we have to put up with, however I always feel a little guilty afterwards knowing that there are people in the world who are far far worse off than I… :crying:

Same sh1t different day I guess…but at least you’re not alone in it all, you’ll always have people to lean on… :wink:

7

i cant sleep…body is so outr of sync with work hours after for weeks off sick, i have a feeling i will be tired tommorrow!

on the stress side…try to be positive! i was stressing over my newly aqquired bike, but it dont matter i have wheels its breing sorted.

try and have down time, like finish whatever your doing and chill for an hour or two unwind…

if you really really cant sleep, get some nytol…good stuff wish i had some!:smiley:

8

gota b someone on here with somthing to knock me out… :stuck_out_tongue:

9

Stress is a difficult thing to live with, but my wife always says it’s not worth worrying about anything. If something is causing you stress, and you can change the situation to eliminate the stress then change it - if you can’t change the situation, then there’s no point worrying about it as there’s nothing you can do…it doesn’t always work for me, but it seems to have helped me deal with my current situation…

10

Hey,

I’ve been there with the stress thing but now I’m far more chilled.

My life went completley to pieces: GF left me, the landlord wanted the house back and my job was on the line, all in the psaces of a few weeks. Came through it all though and put things into perspective.

Really is no point worrying, we all do it to a certain extent but realise that i t achieves nothing.

Be as positive as you possibly can be and take a big step back from things, chill out and realise that you have a whole exciting life ahead of you and this is time is a very small percentage of it.

Look how many people on the site care about others, sounds a bit soft maybe but it’s true, take heart from that.

Life is for living!!!

11

I run three reasonably succesful business’ I have started farming and I have more projects on the go than you can shake a stick at…

I have had my big off and I have three teenage boys…I got divorced 3 years ago and I am doing my dance teaching exams…I have years of rehab to recover my arm, I cant do anything that I used to, like squash, go-karting, driving my big truck toys, rebuilding my bikes, but i have adjusted. No sense worrying about the nthings i cant do.

I have more stress than most people have time but you know i dont give a monkeys. If something was important and difficult and on my mind at night, I used to write it down and fall asleep as soon as i had done it, with good sleep you can handle any pressure…

When I had my accident I couldnt sleep, however, what I did do was forget everything but getting well, that helped but it still took me nigh on 4 months to get on top of it. I did, and now sleep is good again, but I am now working again and have taken on all my responsibilities again and becasue I cant write at night easily I cant do my task writing, so I have to order it in my head, thats not so easy but I have managed to do it. I recommend writing it down, gets rid that way…

So order things properly, write the problems down and possible solutions as they come up especially if they are irritating you at night…

if there is nothing you can do to stop things happeneing write down what you will do…or could or would like to do…

then think of something really relaxing like the last good bike ride or that gorgeous lady you met the other night and what you might do with her, anything that takes your mind towards peace and tranquility…

There are two other things that you might want to do to relax too but as a young lad I am sure you dont need me to tell you about those…

12

If you are in good health you should consider yourself very lucky.

You only need to read some of the posts on here to see there are people dealing with much more severe things than work/uni/money. I’d say at least 80% of us have the very same worries you do. I myself work long hours in my full time job, I do a part time job and I’m studying part time for my professional accounting qualifications. On top of that I’ve been on a massive health kick the last year and manage to fit in 3/4 gym sessions a week. And don’t get me started on family issues :rolleyes:

I’m often knackered but I’m here to tell the tale and in a few years when health is sorted and exams are finished I can reap the rewards of what I’m working towards.

You say you have a car and a bike so money can’t be too tight. If it was you could sell one or both of them and free up some cash that way. Everytime I think cash is tight, I consider getting rid of one of my vehicles and as I don’t want to I make changes elsewhere instead (hence the part time job).

13

Have you considered exercise? Regular exercise will make you tired and cause your body to desire sleep so that it can repair and it also makes the brain release endorphins which will help you relax too. But if you’ve never exercised before or suffer from health probs speak to your GP first!

Watch what you’re eating and when you’re eating too - big meal late at night often affects sleep as does alcohol and of course caffeine. You might crave sugary foods too but again avoid these as this can make the problem worse. If your diet is rubbish you’ll be missing out on vitamins and minerals that could help sleep too.

Hope that helps

:slight_smile:

14

Agree on the exercise.

As a racing cyclist the bicycle has always got me through hard times, endorphins are better than any pills etc.

Find an exercise you like and try and do some exercise at least three times a week if you can, really does help.

The fitness will help your motorbike riding too. Several top motorbike racers are into cycling too.

15

You could take up Yoga, Qi Gong or T’ai Chi… or all of the above. If you haven’t got time for organised lessons maybe just try some deep breathing. In through the nose out through the mouth. Concentrate on lengthening the out breath- long and slow. Guaranteed to calm you down and in the long term you’ll find it’s a great counter to stress. :slight_smile:

16

Agree with everyone on the exercise, but the diet is just as important.

One of the phases that you can keep to is

Breakfast like a king, Lunch like a lord, and dinner like a pauper.

In other words do not eat a big meal in the evening.

The other thing to keep clear of eating late at night is cheese.

If you just have things on your mind that you have to do the next day, have a pen and piece of paper by the bed, when you wake up and think that I must not forget to do that, write it down, and then it disappears from the worry list, and you can get back to sleep.

17

for over a year i have been dealing with several court cases filed against me… (all civil… nothing criminal) to do with my business partner who scammed all the other partners and is now chilling in dubai!!
and then i got divorced! so i have to fork out all sortsa money in legal fees every month to pay… almost at the verge of bankruptcy…making ends meet is hard…have to sell my PnJ now too…

along the way some genius doctor decided I was depressed and prescribed me anti depressants to calm the stress and panic attacks… thankfully i didnt take em… from a whole buncha people in my support group we’ve figured the following as the best solution to stress and panic attacks:

Exercise; daily run along with choclate any light exercise such as a run or tai chi (as suggested by alot of people before me) releases ceratonin which relaxes and calms the mind and helps with sleeping

Music and Books as silly as this may sound… calming music and reading a book helping the mind switch off… read any light novel and it will ease you into sleep (if its too addictive you’ll wanna finish it! lol)

Feel good factor feel good about yourself the way you are. look for the positives in everything and steer away from negatives… its target fixation… you have negative thoughts you’ll feel negative… focus and train yourself to think positive. drill it in your head… you are in control of everything and you can create your own reality (sounds fluff but you’ve gotta think like a winner to be a winner)

Organising your life this is a personal one of mine… people come out with all sorts of ways of organising life… i have my own… do i one good thing in the morning and i good thing in the afternoon and if you do it every day for a whole week you’d have done 10 good things and you can enjoy the weekend! :cool:

say NO don’t take on too much… don’t try to please people too much… u’ve got a lot going on so just deal with what you’ve got… no point taking on more stuff…

the herbal sleeping pill does work… a bit too effectively me thinks… :hehe:

good luck mate… and give us a shout if you want to just get things of your mind

18

There is a lot of advice that makes sense, personally I deal with stress in probably only 3 ways, punch bag, long bike ride and some passionate sex. 1 or all work for me. Getting it out of your system in any number of ways is a lot better than trying to deal with it any other way (internalising) - as long as no one else gets hurt its got to be productive right? :smiley:

19

ONe thing that worked for me to help me sleep is concentrate on your breathing. When I was really wound up I realised I was taking really shallow breaths. Force yourself to slwo down adn take long deep breaths, hold the air in for 5 seconds and then breath out long and slow… but concentrate on what you’re doing. Think about the air in, holding it and then out again. I know it sounds daft, but one of the best ways to beat the brain is to outsmart…

Less coffee/caffeine helps, and I can’t agree more with Alta-Ego, good regular excercise… none of this 10 minute work out, ooh I’m knackered stuff… really work yourself and then take a sauna or steam bath afterwards. You’ll feel MUCH better.

Avoid the chemicals too, processed meat, sugar and salt. Try an eat as natural stuff as possible… s’weird but the sugar salt fat diet most of us eat messes with our minds as well as our bodies and it does affect your general health which will also make you stressed and uncomfortable, which makes the stress problem worse.

And if you cna stomach it juice some fresh fruit or veg… all the vitamin c and natural goodness is really positive for mental health. Chuck in a nana too, potassium’s a great natural anti-depressant…

:slight_smile:

20

Beer. The cause of and solution to all mans problems :wink:

(ps some good advice above! Its best not to worry about things you cannot control, and control those that you can. drinking is not the way forward but will help you sleep :slight_smile: )