Stress is at an all-time high in our work places and in our homes. We are fearful of losing our jobs as companies downsize or move the majority of their operations off-shore. Businesses are expecting many of us to spend longer and longer hours at work and to take work home with us. We oblige them. Often we spend our evenings responding to that inner compulsion to do what we perceive to be our duty – to formulate our replies to the multitudinous emails.
So it is that our inner stress follows us into our homes – our one-time sacred places of refuge, of connection, of communication, of intimacy. Often, our partners are as busy and as worried about job security as we are. The cumulative stress creates a ripe environment for conflict. Some of us have experienced major traumas in our earlier lives. Until these are resolved, we live in a state of chaos, uncertainty and confusion resulting in a further stress build-up. Sometimes, we do not take the necessary steps for healthy stress management. Instead, we turn to mind numbing substances and activities. Addiction makes its presence known as our ‘soother of choice’ becomes an all-encompassing force in our lives. We drift even further away from our partners and from our shared and individual realities. We are no longer in control. Our addiction is. We need to try to remember that help is available for Addictions as is Therapeutic Educational Techniques for Stress Reduction and for Anxiety Alleviation. The earlier in this process that we seek help, the more control we regain over our lives. Betty Stockley Copyright 2013