Therapeutic Thursday

Did you miss me yesterday?  After a summer of not missing a day I just couldn't make it on here.
I know what stress feels like.  
I had to teach about concrete and abstract nouns today, and I know that stress is supposed to be an abstract noun - you know, something you can't see or touch - but I know exactly how stress feels.  
It makes me think I'm having a heart attack.  
Of course I'm not, but my chest hurts so bad at times that I want to crawl back into bed and forget about  completing anything on my to do list.  It's my own little stress meter, something that I learned about my first year of teaching.  Back then I really thought that I was having a heart attack and went to the emergency room, where they hooked me up to all the wires and told me that I was just stressed out.
I'm supposed to relax more.  
I really should sign up for monthly or weekly massages.  But I can't, so I won't.  Now it's 13 years later and the stress-o-meter has been going non stop for the past 9 school days.
Putting on my makeup in the morning feels like I'm putting on war paint.  It's that kind of year - already.
So how have I combatted stress in past years?
I bake.
I shop.
I ask for Massage Envy gift cards for my birthday...
and Christmas...
and our anniversary...
and Valentine's Day...
and Mother's Day...
and then I use them all - or I forget to use them and my back ends up so tight that my shoulders are literally touching my ears.
Chocolate helps.
Motrin and Tylenol help.
Chick flicks help.
Playing with my boys help.
Venting to my husband helps.
Blogging helps.
This year I have found that my puppy is already helping.  She begs me to take her for long walks at 6:15 am and I give in.  We tackle the different routes around our development and I feel so good afterward... 
That is until I have to put on my war paint and head to the classroom that I love.
I really do love my class... and my school... and my grade level team...
It's just a stressful time of year.
I don't know if this is helping anyone out there - maybe just the fact that I'm describing your very thoughts as well, and we can commiserate together.
I'm linking up again with Blog Hoppin'!