The last week has been pretty crazy. I think there have been more tears this week than in the last month or two. I’m glad it’s over though and things are starting to look up.
It started last weekend when a friend and I talked about some family stuff that I’m going through. The tears started and it was hard to stop them. I guess it had been awhile since I last cried about that stuff. It was good to talk though, and even better cause I had an arm around my shoulders the whole time. Sometimes it’s the simplest things that help make you feel better.
Monday I got official confirmation that I was enrolled in my chemistry class. I spent a couple hours at the school paying tuition and and at the bookstore buying my books. My bank account wasn’t happy by the time I was finished. I do however feel like a real student now though with my textbooks.
I’ve been spending a couple hours each day working on the review section in my chem book. To say that I don’t remember much since high school would be an understatement. I’ve spend a lot of time being frustrated and not understanding how to name acids. The fact that I needed to use a chart to answer a bunch of questions wasn’t mentioned, so I spent three hours not knowing why I was getting the wrong answers no matter what I did.
So less than a week into school and I felt like I was already behind and confused and like I’d never understand what was going on, even though I was trying really hard and putting 100% into it.
By Thursday night I was feeling really stressed out, so I decided to journal, which I haven’t done in months (which probably had something to do with me feeling so overwhelmed). 45 minutes later with everything that I was worrying about out on paper I was definitely feeling better.
I also had a break on Wednesday evening when I went to my first volunteer meeting. (I mentioned I’ve decided I’m going to volunteer, right?) Even though I’d been emailing back and forth with someone, it was great to finally meet her and some of the other ladies involved. I felt like our time was spent really making a difference for the charity we were at. I was impressed with what I heard about the organization, and I think I’ve found some great people to volunteer with.
Last night I was texting with a friend about how much I was stressing out about chem. I mentioned I was going to try things a little differently, and he said he thought that was a great idea, and really encouraged me to try it. While I’m going to try to continue to figure it out on my own for a few more days, if I’m still not getting it I have a plan to fix it.
I’m definitely feeling better about things today. Talking about the family stuff made me realize I need to talk about it more before things get bottled up. I have some really awesome friends who are more than willing to listen. I just have to remember to take advantage of that more often. I’m going to start journaling again to get stuff that I’m worrying about out of my head. I have a plan for my chem class if things don’t get any better. I’ve found a great outlet in volunteering to help others and feel good about the work I’m doing with them.
What do you do when you’re feeling really stressed out?