Grace Under Pressure

While Under Pressure is the book title for our Parent Book Club discussion focusing on anxiety felt by adolescent girls, I feel the title is something most of us feel in life at times. The pressure of looming deadlines. The pressure of family issues. The pressure of politics, economics, and society. There is a lot we can worry about no matter if you are an optimist, pessimist, or pragmatist. 

Lisa Damour observed, “Unfortunately, anxiety, like stress, has gotten a bad rap. Somewhere along the line we got the idea that emotional discomfort is always a bad thing.” Stress can be a point of focus and can heighten our awareness when it is needed. Our reaction and approach to problems are often honed by stress. Indeed, it is often a way we know we care about something. It is our role, as adults, to help our children, our colleagues, our community to demonstrate grace under pressure. 

It was Hemingway who famously claimed that, “courage is grace under pressure.” I believe this is an outcome of living our Pillars, to know ourselves and stand up for our beliefs while respecting others. We must model what we wish our children to become in our interactions and reactions. In this way we may be able to challenge the feeling of under pressure and use it for positive change.