Stress is gaseous. No matter its intensity, it expands homogenously, filling up the whole mind. It does not matter whether the problems are huge or tiny. The stress is everywhere. Every thought, every action, every feeling is soaked in stress. This notion is my favorite insight from the famous book Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. It sticks with me even months after finishing the book. The sufferement described in the book is in no way comparable to stress. Still, the metaphor holds for all scales. It also ties in wonderfully with the understanding of thoughts that I learned over the past years from meditation. As any other thought, stress is insubstantial, even if at times it feels heavy as a rock. Just like a gaseous substance, it dilutes and vanishes as soon as we let fresh air flood the mind. Meditation is the equivalent to a CO2 measurement device that beeps when it is time to open the windows and look at the situation from a fresh perspective.

Ready for some pressurised stress?