Stress and Platonic Love for Strangers

Today I fell in platonic love with a stranger. 

It was one of THOSE mornings at work where, if it wasn’t for our upcoming Tanzania trip I would have decided to be unemployed by this afternoon.  One of those days where the stress just builds up to the point that tears, snapping and walkouts seem like a completely viable solution.

It cannot be emphasized enough as to how bad stress is for us.  Our bodies have a natural stress-response system which prompts our adrenal glands to dump a load of hormones into our system including epinephrine and cortisol.  Epinephrine, otherwise known as adrenaline, causes increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure and a variety of other adrenergic responses (I recommend https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epinephrine for more info ... and, btw, you can also support Wikipedia for its awesomeness here: https://donate.wikimedia.org).  For a slightly less scientific, more awesome view of the effects of adrenaline on our system, I recommend a movie night with Crank!  
Increased cortisol release prepares the body for a fight or flight response by increasing the availability of glucose to increase available energy for those cells required to either get the heck outta there or stay and fight.  At the same time, in acute stress situations, cortisol also creates heightened memory and immunity.   In chronic stress situations though, when the body does not have a chance to return to a relaxed state before the next stress experience, heightened cortisol levels can inhibit the immune system, impair cognitive function, lead to glucose-related diseases and increase blood pressure (among other things).

In these routine stressful situations, when we are constantly under pressure and either do not allow ourselves or are not able to physically relax, the stress-response system stays on contributing to an onslaught of health problems including, but by no means limited to: heart disease, hypertension, sleep & digestive problems (& consequently, in an evil loop of fate, weight gain), depression, memory impairment, skin conditions (just like weight gain, this one is a looper for those of us with certain vanity issues), headaches, gingivitis, loss of concentration and, another looper, varicose veins.  UGGG.

Even though I know all of this, I tend to be a person who embraces my stress-response and not so much my relaxation-response … sometimes I am not even sure if that response was correctly programmed in me at conception.

Back to my work day … I very conveniently booked myself into lunchtime yoga Wednesdays and Fridays and it started today.  Phew.

I arrived at the Wellness Center just about ready to, as they say, blow a gasket.  I sat by myself sulking against the wall waiting for the instructor.  Where on earth was that instructor anyway?!?!  Five minutes of awkward silence passed (apparently I am not the only one with stressful days at work) when in bounced (literally, like Tigger) our yoga teacher completely and utterly full of life, happiness and relaxation.  As the hour class passed, I just absorbed her energy and it was AMAZING.  So positive and free-spirited and wonderful.  So very very different from the majority of others who claim my work day hours.

I had two realizations in that hour today:

1) I’d fallen in platonic love with a stranger with toe rings and braided bracelets and a peace sign t-shirt

2) I need to find what I love in life and make that my career so that I can be a permanent source of life and energy and positivity for those around me.   I definitely have it in me, I just need to find my outlet!

So, with all of this being said, I’m going to go to my yoga class 2x/week (possibly 3 depending on what is offered on Monday at lunch) until July and then climb my mountain and hopefully somewhere between here and there, learn what it is that would make me an inspiration to the stressed work horses around me. 

Training today: 1 hour Hatha Yoga & 8k run with 6 400m+ hills, no walk breaks