Saturday, December 13, 2014

On anniversaries

Anniversaries, on the whole, are celebrations. But some bring sad memories, some bring anxiety. From a cosmic perspective, anniversaries are arbitrary points in time. Why attach significance to the orbital period of a small planet around an average star? Yet they are psychologically powerful.

Yesterday, an anniversary passed which released a build-up of anxiety in the household that had grown so stealthily we didn't notice it until it was upon us.

Yesterday marked one year since my (luckily very minor) stroke. A year ago, my body gave me a warning. What it was trying to warn me of remains a mystery. A year has passed in which batteries of tests showed no obvious cause, which is good in many ways. The most likely explanation left is a culmination of stress and fatigue at that point in my life. So stress, presumably, is the obvious risk factor I need to manage.

Yup. So what did I do?

Started a new job in March, which I'd applied for before the stroke and which I didn't want to pass up. Stressful much!

And published my first book.

Nothing like taking it easy :)

Well, I'm still here. After the early weeks of complete disorientation, the new job has been a good move on balance. It's exciting, challenging, great people to work with. The only persistent down sides are the hideous cost of downtown parking, and the extra 15 minutes commute each way (which doesn't sound like much, but when it was previously 25 minutes it's a noticeable addition).

And keeping on the positive side, we recently marked our tenth anniversary since landing in Canada as new immigrants. Now that's what I call an anniversary!

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sometimes it's not so much avoiding stress as it is adjusting your attitude toward it. I am so glad you haven't had a recurrence and especially glad you chose Canada as your home. That IS an anniversary to celebrate.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Ian, that is a worthy anniversary to celebrate since you are still with us. Who knows what kind of stress really did that to you.

stephen Hayes said...

Sorry to hear about the stroke, but glad to hear it didn't really slow you down. Our son suffers from stress and it can be a terrible thing. I was just checking out your cover post for your novel and the one you ended up with is so much better that the original choices. I hope you're finding an audience for your writing. Marketing is so hard. Take care.

Denise Covey said...

Yes, some anniversaries are good, some bad. I'm glad you are feeling so positive after your stroke health scare. And the new job...and moving to Canada. All good! Now relax and enjoy Christmas.

Happy Christmas! Fantastic New Year!

Denise :)

Botanist said...

Delores, I seem to recall posting a while back about handling stress, and I felt that even if you are good at adjusting your attitude, having to do so constantly is tiring and stressful in itself.

Alex, looking back, I know that was an especially stressful day in a stressful month. I think something inside me said "enough."

Stephen, if you are looking at the post I'm thinking of, those original choices were just rough drafts, never meant as finished artwork. You can see how the eventual cover transitioned from draft #1.

Denise, I wish you & yours a great Christmas too!

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Ian - is it that long ago .. and you have achieved much since the mini stroke. I'm glad all is well and appears to be ... I guess re the parking costs and time span - it's just accepting and leaving that little extra time .. so stress doesn't build up. Good for you though ...

Congratulations on 10 years in Canada .. and have a lovely Christmas and New Year ahead .. cheers Hilary

Botanist said...

Hilary, it is really just a matter of accepting the reality and not fretting about things I can't do anything about...

Jean Davis said...

Glad to hear you're in good health now. That's certainly something to celebrate! Stress never seems to quite go away, even when we try to get rid of it. It just pops up somewhere else in our lives.

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