Friday, August 24, 2007

It's Official, I'm Stressed

Back in my junior high and high school days my finger tips and palms itched and peeled all the time. I was, of course, mortified that my hands were peely and I did my best to hide them. It was weird, you know? They weren't rashy. They just had a really deep "itch" (for lack of a better word) and the skin just flaked off. My mom told me that hers used to do that, and when she graduated from college they just quit. She always chalked it up to stress.

One day, some time in college, I realized my hands no longer peeled. Which is funny if you consider how obsessed I was with grades (and making sure they were as close to perfect as possible). I thought of myself as stressed, but I wasn't apparently.

On a related note, just this morning Hubs and I were remembering the "good times" in college. I mentioned that I missed the camaraderie. I really didn't have that many of my own friends. I had acquaintances that I called friends, but I couldn't find most of them today. They bar hopped on the weekends to search out men and I searched out my man and we ate Doritos and drank Pepsi in front of "Friends." I got very used to being the classroom friend or the study partner. Really I've never been much of anyone's friend beyond the event in which we shared since grade school. I think it's the way I'm wired. I'm content with a book most of the time and it's a real effort to put together an extracurricular gathering. (I took the spiritual gifting assessment and Hostess is NOT my gifting by any stretch (My MIL, on the other hand, could write the book)). I think maintaining friends is stressful to me. Especially in the formative years when friends are your everything.

However Hubs did have friends. Also classroom friends, but since he was in engineering his classroom hours extended to about 4AM rather frequently. I often brought him dinner and we ate together. Before long the whole class adopted me as the resident wife. I'd bring in a casserole and some paper plates and they would decimate it. His friends became my friends. And now that he works at an office, his friends are his friends and I miss the camaraderie. Because these men have wives and don't need me to cook. Nor would they eat what I cook because I use butter and sugar liberally.

Hmmmm, the point of that? I think interpersonal relationships stress me out and I didn't stress about them in college. I think that was my point.

Anyway.

The last couple of days my fingertips have been itching like crazy and I noticed last night that one was peeling. This morning they are all peeling and my palms are itching also. Since NOTHING chemical has changed in my life (indicating allergies or some other sensitivity) I'm crediting stress.

I didn't miss this. It was a vague memory that I would have been happy to keep that way. I hope that whatever is stressing me goes away.

Maybe it is lack of sleep? I don't know. So weird.

4 comments:

MotherT said...

Jaimi, what you are describing sounds very much like a mild skin allergy. Sometimes, I have this happen when I have been cleaning where there is mold/mildew. Try some of the Benadryl cream, and see if it gives you any relief from the itching.

And I do relate about the friend thing. I like people, and I like having friends, but they are a lot of work. Some folks are worth it, though!

Mr. and Mrs. Nurse Boy said...

I agree with Theresa, I think it is alergies also, but did she just say that you have a moldy house? Dang! No wonder you don't want to have to many friends. I do think that friends are the people that you can offend, but they know your spirit enough that they can keep coming back. I hope.

Don't worry Theresa, Chaos and I don't think you said she has a moldy house. That was just to easy, and I am classless enough to take the shot.

mommy4life said...

If it is caused by stress, the lack of sleep with Charming, as well as the mourning of "what could have been?" could certainly account for it.

Anonymous said...

Well, at least you found a man you connect with. :) I'm 30, and different from most folks too - content to stay home and read a book. I do have 3 very close gal friends though... but, no man in my life, and I have yet to meet one I think I'd connect with anyway!