Fuelled by Coffee

by Nan Berrett - Word Solutions  You feel like grabbing a handful of your hair and pulling really hard, but you know it’s not going to help. It’s not just common to older women (and men) in business, but as we get older and wiser we still don’t always manage stress in the best possible ways. When we embark into business we are infused with excitement about the challenges and possibilities, but as time passes we often struggle with overwhelm. I’ve been pondering, again, on stress and how it affects us and, more importantly, how we can manage it. Last week I went to my doctor for what I thought was a regular visit following a blood test and discovered I was low in Vitamin D (winter does that!), everything else was fine, except my blood sugars were through the roof. The root cause right now has been, for me, stress and skipped meals because of something happening over which I have no control. I’ve had to cancel a few meetings, play catchup and drive a lot. The doctor’s answer to...

 Nan Berrett - Word Solutions   The other week I had a panic attack. It was quite unexpected and was caused by a difficult morning followed by a visit to a busy shopping centre. We arrived at the food hall looking for lunch and the place was packed. I suggested my husband find us a table and I’d get some cash out of the banking machine, as I recalled that our favourite food provider didn’t accept card payments. I  blithely told my husband that I would find him and then go and fetch our meal. I got an incoming call and, in my hunt for a quiet place to stand so I could hear, I got disorientated. I lost my landmarks and when it came time to find my husband, despite wandering through all the tables and chairs I couldn’t spot him. It was school holidays and the noise was overwhelming and became worse the more anxious I became. That’s when I had my panic attack! I’m an introvert and find many social situations challenging. Oddly, I manage really well at meetings, do a lot...