Total madness would be the hitting result of that tension building up in your body with cold sweat and gritted teeth. Your temper is about to burst and you are almost crimson with that boiling blood of yours rushing toward your brain. The point here is, you are very angry at someone or at something, yet you have to restrain your feelings because you just can’t find a way to show it because of some issues.

Though it is good, when certain circumstances require it, to control strong emotions, it is still advised to express it with full conviction to lessen the stress. But even though you know this and are boiling mad, you still find yourself repressing your anger because you are just too kind-hearted to express it in a harmless way. In this case, you should find creative and yeah, harmless ways to release that anger.

1. Shout. Let the world know that you are mad by shouting at the vastness of the sea or the sky. Curse the people you hate and the situation you’re in. Or. If you can’t find an empty place, do it in your bedroom where you place your pillow above your head and then do the screaming thing.

2. Throw the tension. Use some trashy or unbreakable items at wall like crumbled papers or pillows to ease your stress. Though this methods appears silly or childish, it has been proven by some studies that doing this can release the tension.

Your officemate taps his fingers on his table. You grimace at this irritation action because it doesn’t allow you to concentrate on your work. And what makes it worse is that he continues to do his thing, and it annoys you more, triggering you to confront his barbaric stuff.

In this scenario, he’s either really annoying or you may just be stressed, where you tend to react at simple things in exaggerated manner. And when stress attacks you, you may not know what you really can do, since you are too irritated to care about the actions you’d do.]

Stress, as defined by Wikipedia, is “the condition that results when person-environment transactions lead the individual to perceive a discrepancy, whether real or not, between the demands of a situation and the resources of the person’s biological, psychological or social systems.” Its manifestations vary on the person’s capacity to express it. Some of them seem like everything is normal when insider, they are quite tensed and stressed, some manifest it with their appearance, while the others become bitchy about everything.

Here are some of stress manifestations:

1. You feel intensity in your body. This suggests that physical manifestations is also a way to signify that a person is in stress. Shaking, having rashes, body aches, and even having goosebumps are some of the things that may might happen when one is experiencing stress.

2. You get angry easily. It pisses you off when people talk, when problems, even the shallowest one, occur, when they have good time, when they move slowly, etc. When a person is burned out, he/she notices everything and has negative reactions to it. He/she might confront or shout at the person concerned just like the scenario mentioned above.

3. You become emotionally unstable. You feel a mixture of emotions such as anxiety, anger, doubts, and tension. When different kinds of feelings get into you, your reaction, apparently becomes unstable too.

Determining that you have depression can be a great help to solve your issues, but that won’t take away the fact that it won’t be easy in doing so. Clearly, that feeling of worthlessness might pull you down until you find yourself more depressed. It’s time to take actions – effective ways to get save you from being more psychologically crashed….. But how? Well, here are some tips….

1. Always remind yourself that you are also special. The feeling of being useless or a piece of failure has a large effect on depressed person. If your situation is similar to this, then always think yourself as someone who is also important, a person of significance – and you have to think this way - always.

2. Express your thoughts. Keeping it to yourself can only burden you more. Have a journal as a medium to release your emotions if you can’t talk to someone. Better yet, tell the person you trust about your problems. He/she might not be a big help, but the gesture you just made creates a difference.

3. Have a therapy. Undergoing a psychotherapy with the guidance of a professional is one of the best ways to heal those wounds. Since they are experts on this field, they can handle your situation with a vast knowledge about your depression, thus, helping you to do get through your healing process.

Once again, tons of tissue papers are piled in the trash can, filled with my tears. You see, I am a very emotional girl who gets deeply touched with almost everything. Show me a dead dog and I will weep like crazy. On the other hand, these days have been more emotional to me. My friend’s aunt just got coma. Visiting her with my friend made me realize what suffering looked like. No offense to my friend, but her aunt seemed quite lifeless. None of her body parts were responsive, except her head. All she can do is to make little glances and gentle moans to assure us that she’s understanding our talks.

Like me, my friend is emotional too. I know it’s really hard for her. And because I love her, I am also experiencing the same pain. God knows how poignant this can be, and I just can’t imagine what would I feel if that kind of situation struck my life. I just wish that would never happen.

Darn, even the thought of it is painful. But I realized that there are actually two things that I can call real suffering:

Losing someone you love. This is a living hell. You’d wish that it was you who’s dead, not the person you hold dearly. Nothing is as painful as staying alive without him/her by your side. Some people say that it’s okay because that person lingers in our soul. And I say that it’s nothing but a screwed up cliché to help us escape the fact that we lose something important that we will never gain.

Comatose. Clearly, my visit on my friend’s aunt influenced me on my perception about suffering. It’s a physical, psychological, mental, and emotional torture that affects both of the sick and his/her loved ones. If you had this, you’d wish you’re dead, because living in a world of corners, hospital machineries, and dextrose is a screwed up existence worse than hell. Furthermore, what would make you more hurt is seeing your loved one suffer because you are bed-ridden and idle, just waiting for Jack the Reaper to fetch you.

Since my old magazines are piled up on my desk, I decide to put them in my drawers to make my room cleaner, and also to kill time. However, while I scan the past issues of Time Magazine, my attention is caught by an issue regarding tsunami in Asia. Remembering the stories behind this tragedy, I can’t help but feel sorry for the victims. It’s a devastating occurrence that tortured those who were left behind, without their homes, without their loved ones. I remembered the time when I donated some of my old possessions. I know it can be of help, but I realize that what I did is just a matter material possession. It can help them survive a day, however it is not something that can really ease them. I know it’s the loss of the loved one that really struck them. Thinking that I wasn’t much of a help, I feel sorry for them, and worse, I pity them.

This tragedy is not the only thing that put me into a state of pitying the suffering.  In fact there are three things that really rip my heart because of pity:

1. The people in Africa…. We know how they suffer from extreme scarcity. Hunger is what kills them, leaving them with only their flesh and bones on their starving community. Angelina Jolie’s “Beyond Borders” shows the situation in Africa. I know what that film showcased is not an exaggeration, but a true depiction of its condition. It’s painful, knowing that there are people out there would be extremely joyful once they eat even a tiny piece of bread while we complain about having better than that.

1. Cyclone in India. A country that was once struck by a cyclone. It is similar to the Tsunami incident and I guess the sight of these people is heart-wrenching, as they clung to the branch of the tress so they wouldn’t get hit by the scorching wind.

1. Grave of the Fireflies. It’s a classic movie anime back in 80’s. Though it’s fiction, it perfectly portrays the condition of Japanese during World War II. This is a story of two siblings who struggled their way in order to survive from the destruction of war. I won’t go into further details but believe me, it would feel like you’d want to commit suicide after watching the film. The scenes are just poignant.

Something that impales you. Something that paralyzes you. Something that makes you stuck in the middle of nothingness. GRIEF…. I love how that sounds…. Something that I love to use in my write-ups…. Yet it is something that I never want to experience.

I have used the idea of grief in many fictions I wrote. Though they were just a creation, I can still feel the weight of it. I never experienced it, but since I have used that subject for a while, I guess I learn some stuff about it.

One of the things I learned is how to cope with it…..

1. Wallow – It’s not wrong to act childlike sometimes, crying yourself to sleep, not eating meals, locking yourself in your room. If it were your expressions of grief, then it’s okay. Some people say that it’s better to let your feelings out than to smile and let it inside for a long time. With this, the tendency is that you won’t be able to move on…..

2. Acceptance – Acceptance will be the only way to overcome grief. You lost something important…. You’re not going to take that back…. So just accept it. It can be hard to accept something you grieve about, but this is something that will make you stronger and better.

There are other things I learn about it, and I know someday, I would be the one experiencing it, not the characters I pulled from my mind. But hey, I am being optimistic, so when that comes, at least I have ideas on what to do.

It’s raining outside. The could is dark and drops of rain continue to knock on my roof. It’s just like this moment when I first moved from our home. It’s really bittersweet, knowing that I’d miss my family very much, but there were new adventures that would be waiting ahead. I remembered how I cried myself to sleep because I missed those times when I kissed my parents goodnight and when my little brothers sneaked in our refrigerator for late night snacks. But I had to deal with it, otherwise I wouldn’t be as independent as I am today. And since this day reminds me of the times when I experience homesickness, I decide to write something about it.

For those of you that have plans to leave you home, well, let me warn you that it’s not as easy as it sounds. It’ll be harder when you are a family person like me. But it’s not like forever that you will stay in your home. And one day, you’ll leave it for different purpose like marriage and job concerns. So, before you find a new dwelling place, here are some of my tips that you can keep inside your luggage to prepare you for what lies ahead…..

1. Entertain yourself. This is why I strongly recommend you to bring your source of entertainment when you leave. Bring DVDs, CDs, books, journals, sketch pad, and other things that can entertain you. When you are feeling lonely, you have to focus on other things and keep yourself busy.

1. Reminisce. For some, it hurts to reminisce your family bonding because they will feel their absence more. But for me, it can still ease your homesickness while you remember how your father plays a joke, how your mother prepares your things, and how your siblings play games. They may not be around, but at least your memories with them are not absent.

1. Communicate. With the progressing technology the world is establishing, a fast and convenient communication is just one step away. You can talk through phone, cell phone, send e-mails and text messages and even chat. By telling them your condition, they will no longer be worried about you. Besides, you can still feel their company while you communicate with them.

Since I already experienced the weight of homesickness, you can say that my tips are credible. These are the things that help me survive it until I finally accepted that things like this have to happen. Besides, your family will always be there for you, so they are not really leaving you. It just happens that you have to move to your new residence. ^_^

Hell, I know it sucks to doubt something, especially when it’s yourself that you are doubting. Believe me, I have been there for a couple of times, and it feels like it is very hard to stand up. No one is really stopping you to move and you can’t do anything you want because of that doubt.

If you are in this situation right now, then you have to take actions before it’s too late…. before your self-worth is crashed. And if you are clueless about such actions, then I will share you to the things that save me from crashing:

1. Believe. This should be the first word that pops in your mind when you are starting to doubt yourself. Believe that you have what it takes to get your goals. Believe that you will conquer your weaknesses and will exceed your limitations. Just believe and you will go far.

2. Stay positive. It is very important to be optimistic. Looking at the bright side even at the darkest times will help you fight your inner monsters.

3. Boost your self-esteem. Your friends and family can help you develop your self-esteem, but at the end of the day, you really are the only person who can boost it. This is because you know your weak spots. Once your self-esteem is boosted, I don’t think doubt can no longer affect you to the point that you will lose some self-worth.

If these things are not much of help, then you can consult a professional who can explain the reasons behind your doubt. Their expertise is solving such cases and with that, they will help you understand it and conquer it.

Guilt…. How I hate the word…. It makes me bothered all the time…. It makes me disturbed all the time…. And I never get peace whenever I feel it. It makes me think of what happened over and over again, even if I’m already sick of it.

Because I can’t stand the burden of guilt, I do these things so I can finally get over it and move on:

1. I divert my attention to other things. No matter how hard it is to get rid of this guilt, I force myself to focus on other things. I watch movie, surf the net, play a video game, and other things that will really catch my attention. With this, I’ll forget the weight of being guilty.

2. I make up for it. This is one way of “atoning” for my mistakes. It is definitely more profound way to overcome guilt. Apparently, when you feel it, you did something that you wish you could take back. But because it is impossible to do that, one of the best ways that you can do is to make up for it.

3. I never do it again. I am definitely not a fool to do something stupid again, that will make me guilty later on. Of course, I should learn from my mistakes and be more mature after that. With this, I can live without any guilt.

With my own guidelines, I can avoid the burden of guilt. Of course, there are still instances when I feel quite guilty, but still, with my personal code, I save myself from the “insanity” it can bring.