On Facebook recently there was re-post that read, “The older I get, the more I understand why Britney Spears shaved her head.” I paused, reflected back to the day I saw that headline, and remembered how much I shook my head, throwing shade and sharp judgment at “crazy” Britney. Now, at 27, I have more sympathy for the pop star.
Recently, I had my own Britney meltdown. It was coming for sure. Luckily for me, I have little hair to shave off, so maybe no one would notice. We all know what these (perceived) meltdowns feel like, so don’t judge because I bet you’ve also been one stressor away from a breaking point.
Like anyone, I try to do everything to avoid it. When I start to heat up, the time goes by faster, and my ability to focus on anything decreases. The last time, I just wanted to go for a run, but the stressors kept me in the house. A knock on the door from maintenance, unanswered texts about plans, burning emails to answer—finally I dropped it all. That day, I exited without even grabbing my headphones. If only for just two miles on foot, the world stopped.
More recently, I’ve tried to slow down. However, a mini-breakdown put things back into focus. I try to use these low moments to transition into a creative space and commit to changing my focus. It’s hard. This is the ultimate “practice what you preach” challenge for me.
We all need to slow down when stressful situations hit. The buildup will drive you to a “shave your head meltdown,” which maybe we all need to have sometimes before we adequately reset. If you expect stress and even embrace it, you can start to learn from it and create positive energy.
There’s no way to avoid the stuff that comes at us, like complicated healthcare plans, constantly evolving relationships, and balancing fun with bill paying. With age I feel that the amount of things the brain can handle decreases as the amount of things thrown at me increases.
Recently, while meeting a friend for coffee, she talked about all of her problems, the stressors in her life and I thought to myself, when are we going to get to mine! We all have so much to pour out at any given moment and for some reason we vent, bitch, and complain to people we actually like. In retrospect, embrace adulthood, combat stress with new energy, and remember there’s always someone somewhere doing much worse then you. Britney went from shaving her head to having an extended Vegas residency gig. There’s hope for you too.