How Do I Manage Stress? Faith, Humor, and Mayberry

How do you manage stress?
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Some days, I manage stress. Other days, stress manages me. I’m not sure which one is currently winning, but I suspect the score is closer than I’d like.

I’ve never been particularly good at turning off my brain. I can leave work at the end of the day, but that doesn’t necessarily mean work leaves me. There are lessons to prepare, papers to grade, students to worry about, and a seemingly endless collection of things that need my attention. And that’s just the professional side of life. The personal side has its own collection of challenges.

So how do I manage it?

Writing helps. It’s been part of my life for as long as I can remember, and there’s something therapeutic about putting thoughts into words. Sometimes I’m writing about sports. Sometimes it’s bourbon, an obscure historical event, or something completely ridiculous. And sometimes I’m writing about my faith. Whatever the subject, writing gives my mind somewhere productive to go instead of allowing it to run around in circles.

Music helps, too. Give me some good Yacht Rock, preferably with a little Toto thrown in, and I can usually find a reason to smile. Laughter is another favorite remedy. I’ve always believed that life is far too serious to be taken seriously all the time. A good comedy can do wonders for my disposition, even if I’ve seen it enough times to recite half the dialogue.

And yes, sometimes I enjoy pouring a little bourbon, sitting down, and appreciating the flavors. But I don’t want to confuse enjoying a glass of whiskey with actually solving the problems that are troubling me. The problems will still be there when the glass is empty.

Ultimately, my faith is supposed to be the foundation of how I handle stress. I say supposed to be because I’m still learning to practice what I believe. Scripture tells us to cast our anxieties on the Lord because He cares for us. That’s wonderful advice, but I’ve discovered that I’m quite capable of handing my worries over to God and then snatching them right back a few minutes later.

Maybe the most important thing I’ve learned is that managing stress doesn’t mean pretending everything is fine. Sometimes life is difficult. Sometimes the answers aren’t obvious. And sometimes the best I can do is pray, take care of what’s immediately in front of me, and trust that tomorrow will bring another opportunity to get things right.

I haven’t mastered stress management. Not even close.

But I’m working on it.

And if that doesn’t work, there’s always another episode of The Andy Griffith Show.

About Douglas Blaine

Capnpen is a writer who was a newspaper and magazine journalist in a previous life. A college journalism major, he now works as an English teacher, but gets his writing fix by blogging about a variety of topics, including politics, religion, movies and television. When he's not working or blogging, Capnpen spends time with his family, plays a little golf (badly) and loves to learn about virtually anything.

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