When life hands you kittens...

In my recent blog I provided several tips to help alleviate the symptoms of stress. I then followed with a story that emphasized the benefits of helping others. Because of these two postings I thought I'd take the liberty of sharing my own recent volunteer experience.

About a month ago, while walking around my neighborhood, my friend and I found 3 baby kittens. They were small, very small, and clearly had been abandoned. They seemed to be in fairly good condition, so we
scooped them up with the intention of taking them to Pet Smart, giving them to the local pet rescue group. When we got to my house we realized we didn't know the first thing about taking care of baby kittens. But, as mothers, and fairly savvy women, we took out eye droppers and fed them heated milk.
The kittens were happy and slept through the night. We were thrilled!

Our optimism quickly faded when we were informed there were no other volunteers to take care of the kittens. Further, we were told the probability of their living was 50%, given their young age-barely 2 weeks old. What to do? What to do when you have dogs and husbands who are not cat lovers?

My friend decided we would take care of the kitties the first week to make sure they lived, splitting responsibility to make things easier. During that week we looked for other volunteers in our neighborhood to help us  in caring for the kittens until they were ready for adoption. My friend was applying the "It takes a Village" theory and using it to our advantage.

The concept worked beautifully the first 3 weeks. Several families took the kittens from 1-3 nights. The kittens were tiny and had to be bottled feed kitten formula. They ate and slept like babies. Who could resist
such cuteness?!!!! Even better, we successfully "marketed" the kittens and found them all great homes.

Around week 4-5 the novelty of caring for the kittens started to fade. While May, Lake and Smokey (we found them in May, by the lake and one was smokey grey) were still cute as could be, they were now big kittens eating food and getting into trouble. Fewer people volunteered, so my family stepped up to the plate with one of the adopting families and we decided to split the week for the remaining few weeks.

Only kittens right? No big deal.

On the contrary. Keeping these kittens during my "new found time" has been a wonderful experience for my family. There have been several benefits to fostering these kittens:

1. We have gotten closer with a number of neighbors through this common bond.
2. We have learned to appreciate the nuances of kittens/cats.
3. We saved 3 lives!
4. My son learned how to care for baby animals.
5. Watching and petting animals helps reduce stress.

All good!!!

Should the opportunity to help someone or something present itself during your "transitional time", take the leap and do your best. The rewards will far out way the costs.

Best,
Paula

Volunteering-The benefits are immeasurable

I truly hadn't expected to write again, as I just posted my article on "Tips for Managing Stress" yesterday, but when I saw this story, I had to share it with you. Let me disclose at the onset, that I haven't validated the authencity of this story. Perhaps it's true, perhaps it's fiction-I don't know as the credits weren't provided. Either way, it's a sweet story about human kindness and how it can leave a lasting impression on others.

A Glass OF MILK

One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left,and he was hungry.

He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door.

Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it so slowly, and then asked, "How much do I owe you?"

"You don't owe me anything," she replied. "Mother has taught us never to accept pay for a kindness."

He said ... "Then I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.

Many years later that same young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease.

Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes.

Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room.

Dressed in his doctor's gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once.

He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day the gave special attention to her case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won.

Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, wrote something on the edge and sent the bill to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and something caught her attention on the side of the bill. She read these words. "Paid in full with one glass of milk"

(Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.

Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: "Thank You God, that Your love has spread broad through human hearts and hands."

There's a saying which goes something like this: Bread cast on the waters comes back to you. The good deed you do today may benefit you or someone you love at the least expected time. If you never see the deed again at least you will have made the world a better place - And, after all, isn't that what life is all about?!

The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn.

Tips for Managing Stress

Last October I wrote an article for a client on the impact of stress to your health. Given the amount of stress generated from job loss, job search and income changes, I thought I’d share this updated version, which includes recent research and personal experience, in hopes of helping you manage your stress levels during this challenging time.

“Stressed out”? Don’t let life’s stressors affect your health
Excerpts Published 10/14/09 Bayonne Community News

Have you noticed how many of your friends, family, colleagues or neighbors are feeling “stressed out” because of the economy, job uncertainty, unemployment or finances? Stress is a normal part of life and is the result of any change, good or bad, to your routine or health. Prolonged stress, stress that isn’t addressed, can promote muscle tension which often turns into neck or back pain or can contribute to more serious physical and emotional illnesses.

Tips for Managing Stress

These helpful tips can help you control your stress level and promote better physical and emotional health.

1. Consult with a Health-Care Provider
• Get a medical checkup.
• Talk to your health-care provider (Medical or Chiropractor Doctor) to determine cause and appropriate treatment.
• Consider speaking to a counselor, psychologist, support group, or… follow lemonsin2lemonaide!!!

2. Exercise for prevention and maintenance
• Try swimming, it’s great for the back and helps reduce stress-induced pain.
• Stretch your body! Take breaks from your daily routine to stretch. For added results, look into a gentle form of yoga or learn some relaxation movements. Talk to your health-care provider about yoga or other stretching movements to ease stress and back pain.
• Start Walking, it’s an easy way to help your circulation and reduce stress.
• Enroll in an exercise program that’s just right for your size, momentum and interest level.

3. Relax and let your body heal
• Clear your head and do nothing for 5 minutes every day.
• Take frequent breaks from using your computer and try to keep good posture when sitting at your desk
• Use cold and hot compresses to help ease stress-related neck and back pain.
• Have a massage to work out the muscles and ease the pain.

4. Make good food and drink choices
• Eat smaller portions of healthier, non-processed, food.
• Relax and slow down-don’t rush through your meals. Enjoy your food and this time alone, with friends or family.
• Reduce or Eliminate caffeine-it promotes sleeplessness and can make you jittery.
• Limit your alcohol consumption as it can affect sleeping patterns or foster depression.

5. Take control over your life
• Create lists to keep track of your commitments. Try not to over-commit!
• Evaluate what’s bothering you, break the problems down and address each one head on in an order that works best for you.

6. Polish your skills to stay relevant to your job and industry
• Take advantage of free on-line webinars to keep your skills fresh.
• Join an association, as they offer great classes and helpful networking.
• Take classes, some states reimburse tuition for in-state colleges and universities. Check your local unemployment office for details.

7. Feed your soul!
• Volunteering gives you a sense of purpose and increases your sense of self-worth.
• Spend more time with people you care about.
• Read books to keep your mind active and allow yourself some escapism.
• Try something new or pursue a dream.

Most importantly...Stay Balanced!

Try to offset life’s daily stressors by maintaining a healthy lifestyle and by seeking help from a health-care provider if you are experiencing any health-related illnesses.

Hope these tips have been helpful, let me know what you do to offset stress.

Paula

Next Week: Stress management-walking the walk and talking the talk.

Job loss, unemployment and the emotional roller-coaster

No doubt about it, being unemployed is an emotional roller-coaster.

How and what you feel will be totally unique to you. Some of the common emotions experienced after job loss include: denial, anger, sadness, guilt, relief, and perhaps, if you're honest, happiness. Your feelings may depend on variables such as your financial stability, job satisfaction, support structure and even your personal esteem. Just know whatever you're feeling is ok, so give yourself some time, let yourself feel it, and then move on.

When I first lost my job I remember feeling a sense of relief. The uncertainty of not knowing whether or not I would lose my job was more troubling to me than actually losing my job. The office environment had become almost crippling, as many people were fearful of losing their jobs and layoffs were a frequent topic of discussion. Although I was not happy about losing my job, and more importantly, it's associated income, I was relieved to be moving on.

Within a short period my relief changed to optimism. I was almost giddy with the excitement of moving on in a positive direction with unlimited opportunities. I saw my unemployment as an opportunity to further develop skills, spend more time with my family, do some volunteer work and position myself for the future. All great stuff.

But then, over time, my optimism faded to frustration. From June-December 2009 my phone never rang despite on-going networking efforts and frequent use of my "elevator pitch". There simply were few-no jobs available, let alone jobs that were a good fit for my technology background and Central NJ location. Further, the competition was crazy. It seemed that every marketing manager was out of work, regardless of their associated industry.

Earlier this year when I applied for a Marketing Director position I found out I was competing against approximately 500 other candidates. While I was confident I was well qualified for the job and my background was a great fit for their search criteria, it was a bit un-nerving to find out there was so much competition. Given the odds, I was pleased that I made it to their short list after undergoing several interviews. When I followed up, however, I was told that I did not get the job. The hiring execs wanted to continue their search for the "ideal" candidate.

Where do you go from there? You pick yourself up, brush yourself off, give yourself a pep talk and move forward. Like I said, being unemployed in today's economy is an emotional roller-coaster. Hang on and keep the faith, as eventually the ride will take us to where we truly want to go. As Dory says in Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming".

Best,

Paula



On a serious note:

Being unemployed is stressful, as it combines 2 of life's greatest causes of stress, Finances and Job. In 1967, Thomas H. Holmes and Richard H. Rahe did a study on the connection between significant life events and illness. As part of their study they compiled a chart of the major causes of stress. While the top 7 contributors of stress change as we age, they usually include:

1) Finances
2) Job
3) Family
4) Personal Concerns -one of the top sources of stress is lack of control!
5) Personal Health and Safety
6) Relationships
7) Death

For additional information, please visit http://ezinearticles.com/?7-Leading-Causes-of-Stress&id=473303

Next: Tips for Manging Stress

Turning lemons into lemonaide-Staying positive when downsized

Don't know about the rest of you, but I liken being laid off to pyschological warfare...every day is a battle. But, as they say, sometimes you have to forget about the battle and stay focused on winning the war.

I thought journalling my journey would be helpful not only to myself, but to others who are also struggling to stay positive and focused while looking for their next "big thing" or, perhaps more importantly, a steady paycheck.

Yours in spirit,

Paula