Stress Release

everyday life 2 Minutes

I made a couple of the right decisions over the past several days that dramatically improved my quality of life. First, I decided not to go to the Nature Volunteering workday on Sunday. It was not obvious that this was the right decision, because the nature volunteering season had just started, and I already knew I wouldn’t be able to make most of the workdays due to scheduling conflicts. Still, I had several major tasks related to the conference that were already past due, and I knew that I was pushing them back, and I even knew why. It was important for me to have a mental space to finally start working on them, because otherwise, I could give myself an excuse that these tasks required more uninterrupted time than I had. I also knew that if I kept pushing them back, their weight would make me even more anxious.

Exactly at the moment I was about to leave the house for a workday, I started working on the conference lanyard design. It was a more difficult task than usual because we had a lanyard sponsor, so the design should have included their logo, and I couldn’t say that if I mess up, I will just order a new one. It took me an hour and a half, but in the end, I was happy with my design. Also, after several back-and-forths, I signed the contract for our speakers’ dinner, which was my second hanging task, and I suddenly realized that a big portion of my worries was gone!

Another thing that helped me a lot was the way I communicated with my mom. Firstly, I told her in advance that on Sunday, I would be in transition between activities, so instead of sitting with her in her apartment, I would take her for coffee at Common Cup. And then, I didn’t visit her on Monday and Tuesday, not because I had events to attend, but just because I don’t have to visit her every time I have a free evening. I hate to say it, but it was the best thing I’ve done for myself! I didn’t have to cope with stress during or after the conversation with her, and I was also surprised by how much extra time it provided. I felt like a human after several weeks of not feeling that way 🙂

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Published by Hettie D.

My name is Henrietta (Hettie) Dombrovskaya. I was born in Saint-Petersburg, Russian (actually, back then – Leningrad, USSR) in 1963, and immigrated to the United States in 1996. I love Saint Petersburg, the city I was born and raised in, and I think it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world. Similarly (but differently) I love Chicago, and can’t imagine myself moving somewhere else in the observable future. I have three children, Igor, Vlad and Anna, all adults living on their own, and one (so far) granddaughter Nadia. I also believe that my children are the best thing that happened in my life. As for my professional life, I am working in the field of Information Technologies. When I was twenty, I’ve declared that the databases are the coolest thing invented and that I want to do them for the rest of my life. Thirty plus years later, I still believe it’s true, and still, believe that the databases are the best. These two statements together imply that I think a person can have it all, and indeed, I think so! Keep reading my journals to find out how I did it.

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