That Seals It: Retail is Toxic to Me In Large Doses

OK, not entirely accurate. This guy has hair.

It's been a bit of a crazy few weeks.  A lot has happened and, for once, some of what happened was actually good!  That being said, some aspects of what happened these past few weeks were stressful and exhausting.

You all know that I have returned to work on a part-time basis.  That has actually been really good for me.  I have a relatively set routine and it has been particularly good for me.  For a few weeks, I didn't have any issues - and then last week happened.  I had been working an average of about 30 hours per week and that seemed to work out pretty well for me.  Then I decided to pick up and extra shift, work six days out of seven and I paid the price.  My anxiety shot through the roof.  I started staying up later and later and getting less and less sleep.  This past week, I had nightmares, serious nightmares, for the first time in weeks.  Things were a little frayed around the edges and I truly felt at wit's end.  Seriously?  I try to work 40 hours and I start  bugging out?

Well, before I started down the well-trodden path to depression and self-recrimination, I asked myself a question:  Is It You or Is It the Work?  That one stopped me dead in my tracks. Could it really be that simple?  Could it really just be that Retail and I are like oil and water?  We may have appeared to be mixed at first, but over a longer period of time, it becomes readily apparent that no matter how hard I try to make it work for the sake of financial stability and peace of mind for my family, Retail Work and I don't get along.

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