More and more people are contacting me about stress. My name is Michael Fitzgerald I am a Counsellor and a Life & Business Coach based in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford. Ireland was once known for its laid back culture, in fact we were proud of it! Today people often have more than one job, we also live in a country where, for the first time, people can be what they want to be and move upwards in their career paths. Often the first question we now ask a stranger is “so what do you do?” as if this will explain who they are.
The success of the ‘Celtic Tiger’ has left us all wanting more. More money, more prestige in work, bigger houses, bigger cars and yet we also want to spend time with loved ones, holidays of enormous proportions, house extensions etc.etc. Even schoolchildren are under tremendous pressure to know exactly what they will do with the next fifty or so years of their working lives. The result: stress is fast becoming a way of life. As life gets faster, not only in Ireland but throughout the world, everyone is subject to stress, regardless of age, social status or intellectual ability. Stress knows no barriers. The worst thing is, we don’t even know we have succumbed to the pressure until we are unwell.
The medical profession has found there are more people suffering from stress than the common cold. Many diseases may be caused by stress, and even more may be aggravated by stress. One only has to consider skin diseases, heart problems, arthritic conditions, digestive problems, insomnia, migraine and allergies to see the medical conditions caused by stress. Equally, mental disorder such as depression, phobias and sexual problems, can arise from stress.
What can we do to survive stress? Why are some individuals affected and others not? Why do some people get road rage and others can drive calmly? Why do some people get completely frustrated, only then to return home to take stress out on loved ones?
The solution is, as all solutions are; easy to say and hard to do! Stress affects different people in different ways. Everyone is unique and has their own particular way of seeing the world and dealing with stress. In this individual perspective lies both the difficultly and the solution. We approach life with a way of thinking, a modus operandi a way of behaving that is uniquely ours.
If you are experiencing difficulties with stress and would like to talk about the problem in a safe and non judgemental way please contact Michael Fitzgerald at the Dungarvan Counselling Centre.
