If anyone truly knows me, they know that Breakfast at Tiffany’s is my sad movie. And if anyone knows Breakfast at Tiffany’s, they know all about the mean reds. That whole ‘suddenly being afraid, but not sure what you are afraid of’ thing. Has that ever happened to you?

Things seem okay, all is well and nothing majorly disastrous is happening to you, yet suddenly you get that pain in your chest. The pain, like an elephant plopped down on you, is intense, and the most horrible part of it all is that you’ve got no clue why.

Sometimes, stress is a buildup kind of thing. It stabs you in the front and you can see everything that caused it and built it up, like a snowball growing, rolling in slow motion towards you. Then there is the kind you don’t see coming. The stab you in the back kind of stress that hits you before you could see it coming. This kind of stress causes the most anguish because you need to figure out what caused it, why it has upset you, and at what point you lost control or perspective.

I am lucky to have a partner that cares and wants to help when I feel this way. Many are not as lucky, and most do not understand this feeling until they have lived it. It is so difficult to understand the stress and anxiety of your partner when they don’t even understand it themselves, but it us important to be patient, to be present, and to have an open mind. These feelings can hit anyone at any time, whether chronic or once in awhile. I find that for me, these kinds of feelings hit me when I lose control and focus of my goals, and I become helpless to my own perceived failure.

It is ok to not always be “on”, to not have the answers 24/7, and to feel like sometimes, your initial plan is not working. The good news is you can reroute your life, and it doesn’t have to be a massive overhaul. If everything is not perfect, try small changes. Any positive motion could be the small steps needed to escape the mean reds and move forward!