Expat Unplugged Diary

Feeling a bit stressed? According to the recent Women of Tomorrow study, 87% of the women reading this in India should be feeling stressed most of the time. According to my calculations, that means there are MILLIONS of stressed out women living in Mumbai alone. If you do not believe me, please attempt the train during rush hour and try to get out at Andheri. (I kid, I kid! After taking the train daily during peak times I have learned it is not all that bad once you learn the dance steps necessary to avoid an aunty ripping your head off verbally.)

This Friday is all about STRESS.

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
Five Things Fridays
Five Things Fridays

Top Five Countries Where Women Are Stressed Most of the Time:

1. India- 87%
2. Mexico- 74%
3. Russia- 69%
4. Brazil- 67%
5. Spain- 66%

This Week’s Top Five Stressors:

Mumbai trains
Mumbai trains

1. Work. Let’s not even talk about it.
2. Knowing you will need to acknowledge the new line on your forehead thanks to work stress very soon. Seriously, a wrinkle at 20-something? You’ve gotta be kidding me.
3. Thinking you had the perfect outfit to wear only to find out it has decided to accessorize itself with the hottest new trend, mold! Sexy.
4. Playing the train in the rain game…. with a laptop and slr camera.
5. The Case of the Disappearing Wallet- It’s a wonderful feeling to know someone else has your debit card, identification and so forth. Totally stress free situation, I promise! 🙂

This Week’s Five Stress Free Things:

Andrea Brown, Parul Kakad and MissMalini
Andrea Brown, Parul Kakad and MissMalini
ID Card
ID Card

1. Dancing the night away with my wonderful friends at Narendra Kumar’s Calendar Launch… too much fun!
2. Coming home to a huge pile of clean, mold free clothes and eating perfectly chopped mixed vegetables every night knowing I did not have to lift a finger. 3. I could get very used to the idea of never having to chop an onion again.
4. Interacting with the most helpful, sweet people at YESBank and the train station. I even was granted an ID Card without my ID. Luckily they let me use that fabulous Jenny from the Blockish photo again. It’s a hoot.
5. Having my gentleman friend call my mother for me knowing that a call to her was exactly what I needed while trying to find solutions to The Case of the Disappearing Wallet. What a gem.
6. Egg McMuffin Meal from McDonalds twice this week. There is just something so comforting about crispy hashbrowns and substandard coffee.

Five Stress Relievers to Try:

Just laugh
Just laugh

1. Yoga. Need I explain?
2. Deep Breathing. My Business Law professor in university would force us to practice deep breathing before an exam. I now swear by it.
3. Laughter. It is much better than any medicine out there. Just log onto YouTube and search away.
4. Healthy Diet. Hmmm, I am guessing McDonald’s breakfast isn’t included in this, right?
5. Stay Positive. Everything looks better in rose colored glasses!

Happy De-Stressing! xoxo