Campaign to Stay Sane

Topics of the day: Worry, Stress, Depression

Worry: I picked up two friends and their nephew this morning to take them to the airport. The nephew was going to live with his grandmother for a month, and I witnessed the advice and admonitions from his mother before we took off. "Be respectful. If you're disrespectful, I will hear about it! Don't talk to strangers. If someone tries to touch you in the bathroom, yell 'Fire!' Don't go to the bathroom by yourself. Make Uncle S take you." Then she started tearing up. I felt bad - how must it feel to send your young son off by himself for a month? - I can't relate.

Apparently she can't either. It turns out there was a last minute plan change yesterday, and she's flying to the same place on Monday for 25 days. All those instructions were for two days apart!

Stress: I'm in the last few weeks before our product release, and everything's getting stressful. The last time we had a release, the stress and late nights, the lack of sleep and social contact, knocked me out. The day after the release, I woke up sick, sick, sick. I was laid up in bed for a week, felt sub-par for three weeks, and had a lingering cough even two months later.

So this time, I'm trying to take better care of myself. I'm taking all of today off from work - haven't edited a single doc, looked at a bug, or sent an email. Better yet, I've started a workout pact with some friends. We're all trying to accomplish five workouts a week for the next month. Now I have a guilt-free reason to do something every day that's not work, and best of all, since it's my get-out-of-work free card, it feels fun.

Depression: My friend recently turned her life upside down and decided to start a foundation. The foundation, inspired by her brother, is to promote suicide awareness and prevention, using the arts (music, painting) as a hook to draw people in and get them to listen to the message. Tonight is the foundation's launch, so I'll be getting dressed up and heading out to support that in a few hours.

Best of luck, S!