All Aboard the Crazy Train
By: Peggy Willms
(5 min read)
What are we doing? Or in some cases what are we NOT doing? WE ALL BE CRAZY UP IN HERE
I get it, we are a fine hot mess. Plain and simple! With the absolute freakiness in the world today, ESPECIALLY in America, we are all experiencing a roller coaster of emotions — hourly. THAT IS NOT FAKE NEWS! How does a “normal” (I tread gingerly using the word normal because normal will never be used as it was pre-2020) person stay sane when we rapid fire between anger bouncing to tears of happiness to fear to rage to loneliness…in minutes?! ?????
Whether you are 4 or 84, these times feel like we are all starring in a sci-fi movie. Where do I start?
COVID-19 pandemic: Here is a bit of stress and lack of control: 1) Stay home. 2) No job=No pay. 3) Change professions, boys, and girls: you’re now history and math teachers, sports coaches and Lunch Ladies and Gentlemen. Teacher Appreciation Day has taken on a whole new meaning. Yo, teachers, expect raises soon. 4) You might be blessed (or not) to work from home, desperately struggling from not wanting to stab your own eyes out and staying out of jail by not stabbing your partners or kiddos or parents’ or bosses’ eyes out. Work-life Balance my *SS. Multi-task – ha, even bigger my *SS. 5)Here is how you dress: Wear a mask when you leave the house AND a cool shirt for all your Zoom meetings. 6) Let’s talk hygiene: Wash your hands incessantly and maybe drink or bathe in bleach. Oh, and BTW, one-ply TP, which you had to beat up an old man for in aisle five. STRESS AND LACK OF CONTROL FOR SURE. AND A WELL-DESERVED TICKET ON THE CRAZY TRAIN.
Politics: an unbelievable, you cannot write this book shit show. Do NOT get me started on whether Blue or Red are the best colors to wear right now. I just have to say right now the ELEPHANT IS SO DAMN STUBBORN, and the DONKEY IS BEING A JACKASS. Take a read at the link at the very bottom of this blog as to how our political party animals were assigned…hysterical and OMG so fitting.
Diversity. I am not assigning a color to Diversity. I recognize history has all sorts of life and death and mistakes and discoveries, and though I do detest how we treat each other, I believe regardless of race, ethnicity, sexuality, religion – any differences possible – we have become a melting pot of “Right Fighters” versus a team of empathetic human beings wanting to band together for solutions and in some cases can we just agree to disagree. I refuse to believe we are that far gone!
Crime: Without money to pay bills, with forced and extensive time in close quarters with people you may like or dislike, with pained emotions of missing births and deaths of loved ones, yes…you will have Crime and Dark Times. Domestic Violence. Addictions… [insert any unhealthy habit or coping skill ] have all increased. Not to mention gun sales.
We are out of control. And when we are out of control, humans and animals – will seek anything we feel we can control, healthy or not. We will eat our emotions to feel control or restrict food to show – look, I am in control. We are taking “control” of how much we want to drink, sleep, yell [insert ]. Being “out” of control makes us want to be “in” control, which is cyclical and then brings us right back to being “out” of control again.
So what do we do? GET A FRICKING GRIP, YOU BIG BABIES OUT THERE. ASAP. Have we learned anything if we go back into hunker-down mode and hit Stage 2, Stay-at-Home Orders? Please tell me we have learned something from our first trip, right? Don’t be shocked – okay? You are going to not only feel out of control but be out of control until you take control. Don’t wake the 2-year-old rebel inside. Don’t become a passenger on the Crazy Train all over again.
You have learned a lot. Give yourself credit. Be prepared and think about it NOW before it happens – in case it happens. Grab a coffee or a beer and think about what you learned. Chat with someone about what you learned. Write it down. I don’t care but think about it NOW. You can grab a hold of the positives you learned, whether about yourself or others, this Spring and Summer and amplify it. You remember when you played more games, listened to more music, and talked to your family and friends more than at any other time in your life. That was cool. Can you remember anything you learned you might improve: eat 1/2 bag of Doritos vs. a full bag or maybe not sit in your Lazy Girl and Lazy Boy chair in pjs three days in a row? You can start off better this time, right? Oh yeah, baby!
Listen, WE ALL BEEEEE CRAZY UP IN HERRR. Yet we are truly all in this together. So take charge, and get ready before you have to get ready: 1) Tighten your budget. if it is slipping, maybe with eating out again 2) Gradually stock up on just a few things 3) Turn off the TV – if a hurricane or World War III comes along, you will hear about it, so let’s decrease the stress now. And recharge.4) Figure out a schedule; get organized. If there is a possibility you will have the kids home a few days a week for the WHOLE school year…
Hurry up and decide how you will react to the madness. Do you want to be a Right Fighter and just listen to yourself talk? Do you want to just bitch? Do you want to fight and cause physical and verbal harm? Do you want to dialogue and maybe agree to disagree? Or perhaps, you really want to find solutions? Figure it out. Cause I am taking away your ticket onto the Crazy Train! Let’s all grow up. And take control. Positively.
Peggy Willms
All Things Wellness, LLC
peggy@allthingswellness.com
Political Animal Assignment: https://www.history.com/news/how-did-the-republican-and-democratic-parties-get-their-animal-symbols
The information provided is the opinion of the author. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. diagnosis, or treatment. The author and the business, All Things Wellness, LLC, and its owner Peggy Willms, are not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting upon the information in this article or on this website. We assume no responsibility for tangible and intangible damages such physical harm caused by using a product, loss of profits or loss of data, and defamatory comments. This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases.
