Twenty-Four Hours

Deadlines approach and today was the first day in quite some time that I actually found myself succumbing to some twenty-four hour bug. WEIRD!

During both undergraduate and graduate school I would consciously take a "day away" when I found myself feeling either overwhelmed or operating at less than 100%. The "day away" usually consisted of staying at home and really conserving physical energy, and while it may sound like I was at those times being lazy I wasn't: in fact, the days immediately following the "day away" were usually quite productive.

How strange, though, that after many years of going "full throttle" I had to stop TODAY - as deadlines loom and flight days come closer? What can I say? Yesterday I felt something in my throat, so I drank a homemade remedy consisting of garlic, lemon juice, salt and water. It worked, yes - no more "throat tickles" - but today I woke with a tremendous headache and actually felt dizzy at one point. So, I went back to bed...and two hours later felt just fine.

There has been much study about these types of sudden illnesses, some of those studies concluding that sudden illnesses - at times of increased workloads - may be the way that people sabotage themselves. Of course, being sick, one can be secretly relieved that the pressure is off for at least a day, and if one is not in the right frame of mind to conquer the task that one faces then returning to that task will definitely be stressful, with the result probably being less than ideal. Having studied psychology, I did have to ask myself if I were indeed playing that game...and was quite happy to find that the answer was "No, I'm actually not well - disoriented, dizzy, feverish - and need to lie down. I can focus tomorrow, because I have been and I'm truly aware of what needs to be done...and I'm enjoying the work!"

So...the metronome ticks...and I look forward to Tuesday night.