I couldn’t think of a good name for today’s blog and that’s what came to mind.
Holy smokes are people stressed!!! What the heck is going on?
I can just feel the frustration out there and it only seems to be getting worse.

WE ARE GOING TO GET THROUGH THIS. IT’S TEMPORARY. It’s what we have to go through in order to get things straightened out. I know most of us don’t like change, but we came here to do just that. To change and grow.

So lets do things for ourselves that are constructive and stop all this self destruction.
Over-eating, drinking too much, doubling up on our prescription drugs, attempting suicide. None of it is any good. It’s hurting us.

If the news depresses you, don’t watch it. If you hate reading the paper, stop reading it.
There are things we can control. We can get more sleep. Go for a walk. Call friends, not to complain, but to reconnect. Take up a new hobby. Change the old routine.

On last Sunday nights show, my co-host Shannon Faulkes came up with a great Top Ten signs that you are burned out/stressed out right now and I’d like to share that list with you.

Symptoms of an Over-giver-itis

Empty joy mug- the happy juice is completely missing in your life. You can’t even think of the last joyful thing you did for yourself.

Floor exhaustion- you help so many people and do so many tasks through out the day, that you could dramatically fall to floor when you get to the end of the evening.

Frazzled nerves- little things set you off, and cause you to want to scream from the top of a mountain cliff.

Couch Lethargy & Blank Stare Syndrome- you’ve used up all your energy reserve on everyone else, that you cannot even get off the couch to do your life passions. You find yourself just blankly staring at the television set after a long day.

Fun Deprived- you realize that there is not one ounce of fun in your life, and this starts to cause you to become bitter, sour, and grumpy.

Fire-Putter-Outer- you find you are constantly putting out fires that you didn’t light (friends/family/coworker dramas)

Phone-Out-of-Ear- the phone is constantly attached to one of your ears, as you listen to problems of all your friends, family, and co-workers, as they have convinced you that you are the only one that can solve their problems.

Do-it-All- you’re actively the chef, maid, teacher, shuttle driver, therapist, healer, receptionist, bookkeeper, plumber, accountant, banker, nurse, handyman, homemaker, and oh yeah, don’t forget the super hero of the world.

Lack of Beauty Sleep- you put in so much time and energy into everyone else, and their problems, that you actually lose precious time for your beauty sleep. You notice you don’t want to even look into the mirror.

Growling and Grunts- when asked to do simple tasks, random growls, hisses, and grunts come from your mouth to let people around you know that you’re exhausted.

Empty Pamper Time- seriously, you find your hair, nails, face, toes, and muscles haven’t been pampered in forever. You find yourself so busy that you have to cancel your pamper appointments. You have full knowingness that you need to take care of yourself, but you continue to focus on others.

I-Wanna-Run-Away- Blues- it’s that overwhelming feeling that you do it all for everyone, and no one helps you, you ignore you, and your body just can’t take it anymore. This is the most serious sign that it is time to do something about your empty cup!

If this list is you, it’s time to make some changes. Sit down and write out a list of all the things you wish you were doing. If you had the time and the money and the energy, what would you do?

And then I want you to get creative and find ways to make those things happen.
We don’t have to be victims to the economy right now. We’ve got these amazing creative minds that love to find new solutions.

Shannon and I will be doing our show tonight on blogtalkradio.com/thejoycafe and after tonight, we will be taking a month off from the show. We are both getting messages from our bodies that we’re worn out, so we need to pull back and re-charge. We’ll send out emails and let everyone know when we go back April 19th.

And this is the kind of thing you can do also. Say NO to the things that are wearing you out.
Say no to the energy vampires in your life. And start saying yes to yourself.

C’mon Everybody. We can do this.

And the hell with Don’t Squeeze the Charmin. Squeeze it all you want!