Dealing with Stress

Hey people of the internet, this is my first blog entry! To start off, my name is Min Kim and although I'm doing this as an assignment for class, I really enjoy writing and see writing as a means to somehow blow off my steam from the hustles of everyday life. It's pretty awesome to be writing about basically whatever I want! No restrictions, no set guidelines... I'm not used to this but I already love it.

Stress management. That's what I want to discuss this week. I like to uplift people with my words, and with this past week being one of the most stressful weeks I've encountered, I want to share my experience in hopes of reaching out to someone who may be going through stressful situations.

I couldn't get a good, single night's rest this week, because I was up worrying so much about my future. I was waiting for a medical waiver that would've determined the path for my future as an Air Force officer, and the waiver had not come in. The deadline was approaching, and as each day went by, I was just left with a scrambled state of mind, constantly thinking about the worst case scenario. I did not have energy to smile, nor the mindset to think positively about this situation. I was deteriorating.

At this moment, I knew it was out of my control, and my only hope was my God. I prayed and prayed, hoping to get an answer. But with prayer, I realized that I shouldn't worry about things I can't control, as long as I gave it my all. And I had done that. Eventually, my waiver arrived on the morning of my deadline, and I was one of the lucky ones. There were a few others who still had not heard back about their status, and I can feel their agony.

Through this experience, I came up with a few tips to deal with stress:
   -Exercise! Waking up for physical trainingat 4:30 am was a bit stressful in that itself, but as soon as I hit the track or some weights, I stopped thinking about anything else but my body. Exercise releases dopamine, which makes you feel good.
   -Think positively! Positivity is pretty much the only thing that you should be thinking about. Count your blessings. There are billions of people around the world who'd rather be in your position than what they are going through.
   -Don't overthink! When you overthink, you tend to think about the worst case scenarios. While it's good to plan and be prepared for the worst, don't let this thought destroy you. I struggled with this over the week and experienced how harmful this feeling can be.
   -Be occupied! Don't allow your mind to crawl up into a hole and start eating itself. Keep yourself occupied with things you love to do. I understand that when you're in this situation, things may not be so appealing to you. However, once you start occupying yourself, you will start to forget about what you are worrying about and maybe even look at it in a more positive perspective. Take a hike, watch the sunset, do your favorite things!
   -Pray! If you consider yourself spiritual and believe in a higher being, this can do wonders. As a Christian, I prayed fervently over the week and not only this helped me cope, it also led me to think about things in a better perspective and see the larger picture. Try analyzing the Serenity Prayer from St. Catherine McAuley: God, grant me the serenity to accept things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.