Stress (5)

Which do you worry about most: money issues, relationship conflicts, or potentially embarrassing social situations?

Stress (4)

Working with numbers and calculations is stressful for some people, while others can do it all day without breaking a sweat.  What is one thing that you often enjoy, even though some other people might find the same thing stressful?

Stress (3)

What is one change you made in your life because you thought it would help manage, minimize, or avoid stress?

Stress (2)

Where does stress emerge in your life? What person, place, responsibility, or activity is tied to your biggest area of stress?

Stress (1)

When you feel under pressure, what parts of your body are the first to be affected? What physical symptoms help you notice that you are under too much stress?

Healthy holidays (2)

What are the predictable events that usually cause extra stress for you during this time of the year?

Living up

Did you parents have specific hopes and expectations for you? To what extent did you feel pressure to live up to their expectations? In what period of your life did you feel most worried about meeting (or failing to meet) their expectations?

This week's theme is your parents.

Control

When key things are out of your control, it's easy to feel stressed and unhappy. But being a "control freak," trying to control everything, doesn't work out well either. In your life right now, what is the common thread that runs through most of your stressful, out-of-control situations?

This week's theme is control.

Taking your temperature

On the whole, do you think you are too complacent (sticking with what's comfortable and familiar too often), or too unsettled (challenged by too many changes at once)?

Going postal

What kind of stress does your work cause for you? Are you stressed out by the things you have to do there, or by the people you work with? Or unexpected crises that cause extra work? Is your work stress the kind of stress you can leave at the office, or do you bring it home with you?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

Dude, where's the rest of the band?

What was one occasion when something you counted on suddenly wasn't there? What happened? Were you able to improvise and get through it, or did your plans fall apart in the face of the unexpected challenge?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

It's all up to you now

In today's Groundhog Day ritual, the groundhog is prompted to emerge from its hole, supposedly to determine the fate of the weather for everyone in the region. When do you feel as though you have too much riding on your shoulders, when for something this important you really should have more preparation, training and backup?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

Whoever invented this...

Technology is meant to make our lives easier, but it also introduces new kinds of stress. Which piece of equipment or machinery causes the most unpredictable trouble in your life?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

Stressful situations

Are you under a lot of stress when you visit with family members? Is it only one particular family member, or several of them? Is the stress related to ongoing patterns from childhood, or is it new issues that put a strain on this (or these) relationship(s)?

This week's theme is stressful situations.

Top Ten: 2009 in review, part 1

Looking back at the year, what were the ten lowest points for you? These are bad things that happened, twists and turns that were unexpected and unwanted, difficulties and obstacles, and just generally unfortunate turns of fate or luck.

(A more cheerful top ten is coming next Sunday!)

Breathe deep...hold...breathe out

What are you doing to reduce the level of stress in your life?

This week's theme is stress.

What are you worried about?

When we feel stress, it's often at least partly because we care about what happens. For example, wanting to look good, wanting to avoid embarrassment, and wanting things to come out perfectly are all basically positive motivations, but they're likely to make experiences more stressful. What are some of the things that you care about—things that contribute to your stress and anxiety? Who or what generates the most stress in your life?

This week's theme is stress.

How much is too much?

How many days in the past week held too much stress and anxiety for you? How many days this week are you expecting to be stressful? Do you try to schedule stressful events so that they don't fall on successive days?

This week's theme is stress.

If you can't take the heat...

How does your personality change when you feel under pressure? Do you lose your sense of humor, or do you make jokes to try to break the tension? Do you become more passive, or more determined? Do you tend to lash out at people around you, or do you become quiet and withdrawn?

This week's theme is stress.

Under pressure

When you feel under pressure, what parts of your body are the first to be affected? What physical symptoms help you notice that you are under too much stress?

This week's theme is stress.