ReFuel - A prescription for sadness

As many of you know, I work in a large, academic medical center.  Like many jobs, my job has challenges and stress.  In addition to “normal” work stress, I routinely encounter patients that are suffering. I often step onto the elevator with a small child that has cancer, or encounter an adult patient in the hall that is enduring physical and mental anguish. I see family members and friends that feel powerless to help their loved ones.  I work with health care providers that are burned out by the suffering that they see daily.  

I know that I do not have the power to "fix" these situations, but the sadness and heartache still weigh on me.  Over the past 9 years working in this environment, I have found one thing that helps lighten the burden on my most difficult days.  While this remedy is not a cure all, it is one of the best prescriptions for hopelessness and sadness.  The solutions is LAUGHTER.  

I know it sounds silly, but laughter has rescued me from sadness.  Laughter has relieved stress and calmed my anger.  Laughter with friends that I love has healed brokenness within me. 

I have a group of coworkers and friends that I routinely chat with and eat lunch with.  While many of our discussions revolve around work issues, our talks also dissolve into silly stories, jokes and laughter.  I can't tell you how many times we have ended up discussing crazy topics such as:  my visit to the International Cryptozoology Museum (you can learn so much about Bigfoot and Nessie), what is housed in Area 51, and we have all enjoyed the thought that the CIA may be spying on our conversations through our cell phone.  These discussions have no purpose – they do not solve difficult social issues, and they do not debate the political hot topics of the day.  But each time I leave a lunch date or a chat with a friend, I feel lighter and have a little more energy to face the next crisis that comes my way.

Laughter as medicine is not a new idea.  The Mayo Clinic has an article on the importance of laughter for stress relief.  There is scientific research, which you can read about with a simple google search.  

Proverbs14:13 says "Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief."  I think this sums up my experience with laughter.  The ache and the sadness may remain, but the laughter lightens my burdens for a short time.  I encourage you to find someone to share a laugh with today.  

ReFuel - Pressure cooker

This week, I have been under a lot of pressure.  I have noticed the warning signs, but I was not able to stop the pressure from building, and eventually, exploding.  Unfortunately, I took my anger and frustration out on the people that I love the most - my kids.

This week was just hard.  I had a breast MRI which stressed me out, Mike was out of town (so I was working, getting all three kids to school, and keeping up with things around the house), work has been stressful (we are downsizing, and it is emotionally and mentally taxing to witness people lose their job), and there is even stress at church as we plan for the transition to our new building (while much of the church stress is "good" stress, it is still stress).  On top of a rough week, this morning two of the kids and I had a piano recital.  As I tried to get all three kids and myself ready, one of the kids was in a foul mood.  We started the morning bickering.  Then, as I tried to find an appropriate outfit for another of the kids, I found a huge pile of clean laundry hidden under blankets in the closet.  As I pulled the laundry out, I became angrier and angrier as I saw the wrinkles, and thought of the times that my child had promised that he/she had put their cloths away.  I blew a gasket (let's just say that this is not the FIRST time that I have found cloths stuffed under beds, inside toys, etc).  I yelled and had a temper tantrum.  Then I started to feel sorry for myself - you know how it goes - no one appreciates me, I work so hard and no one cares, I have failed as a mother, my kids don't love me or respect me, maybe I should just run away .......

When Mike finally got home, I was a mess.  I told him that I had cried more today than I had in the past year.  Mike told me to get out of the house and go to Salem Lake to ride my bike.

Now - before you think my husband is terrible, he was actually giving me the best gift that he could give me. Since I grew up in the country, I feel most at peace when I am in nature and connected to God.  I got on my bike, and as soon as I started to ride, I felt peace.  As I rode, I reflected on the need for each of us to take time to "refuel".  For me, Salem Lake is one of my happy places.

I encourage each of you to take a little time to center yourself and connect with God daily.  I will share some of the ways that I "refuel" in the posts on this blog.