Renaming “Arsenic Hour” to “Nurturing Hour”
13 July 2007 by livingrainbowcolor
The time period from 3-6 p.m. is my “Arsenic Hour,” a time in which everything can and does go emotionally wrong. At 3 p.m., I’m starting to get tired from my workday, we have to consider dinner, figure out what kind of mood the teenager is in, plan in exercise, and myriad other things.
During those hours, I’m very subject to negative self-talk, even naming the time Arsenic Hour, as if I’d rather take arsenic than deal with the issues.
Today I claim these hours back for me, renaming them Nurturing Hour. The stresses don’t change, but I choose to think about them differently. Yesterday is a case in point.
I got home and still had to do another teleconference call. My scheduled aquajogging class was that evening, and I had to negotiate the weekend plans with my daughter. Oh, yea, and we were all hungry for dinner. Typical Thursday.
After the conference call, I talked to DD, and found that I needed to run to the grocery store. Sigh. Once there, I decided to nurture myself with small delicious foods for dinner. For myself I bought a small can of olives filled with jalapeno cream, a fresh French roll, a piece of onion tart, a salad, apples, and a new type of cookie. (Somehow this one company, Leibniz, seems to really have my number. Every time I go to the store, they have a new cookie out, and it’s a fabulous type. I buy and enjoy them in small portions.)
For dinner, I made a plate of olives, sliced bread with cream cheese and cookies. Then I told myself that if I didn’t want to go to aquajogging, I didn’t have to. DH came home, started reading a magazine, and asked about aquajogging.
“I’m going to nurture myself instead.”
“But I thought aquajogging was nurturing yourself?”
“I’m going to just sit here and meditate.”
“OK.”
“I’m done meditating, ask me the question again.”
“Are you going aquajogging?”
“I’m not going to do anything I don’t feel like doing. If I don’t want to go, I don’t go. And it’s nobody’s business what I do.”
<more doubtful> “OK…”
More meditating.
“Ask the question again.”
“I’m afraid to.”
“Ask anyway.”
“Are you going aquajogging?”
“Yes, I think I will. I love it so much, and it makes me feel better. Now I really do want to go.”
“OK, whatever.” <grunts and goes back to reading magazine>
“And from now on, that’s the way it goes. I decide what I’m going to do without guilt or shoulds.”
<grunt>
I loved aquajogging last night.
really love your blog! (and not just because we have reeeeely similar usernames
) you have a great voice. it’s nice to find another on the path!
I have been wanting to comment on your blog for a long time. I’m so glad you moved it!
I love how you turned arsenic hour into nurturing hour. Both would have resulted in aquajogging, but it must have been so much better after nurturing hour.
How wonderful you have found ways to nurture yourself in whatever way works - you define it, good for you! One way to nurture yourself is to eat low fat, low protein carbs during 3-6pm because if you eat them, say, a large handful of pretzels, pita bread or low fat tortilla chips with salsa, your brain will make serotonin which will give you calm energy and also take the edge off your appetite. Fat will make you sluggish. Protein interferes with the process. Carbs for dinner are also a great idea to feel calm and reduce after-dinner eating. Have protein at breakfast and lunchtime as sometimes that late afternoon “witching hour” can be a result of not enough protein in the daytime.
- Nina Frusztajer Marquis, MD
co-author, The Serotonin Power Diet
Great suggestions, Nina, Thanks!
I have a buddy who was having Arsenic Hour problems with his whole family. They started sitting down when they all got home and drank a glass of orange juice together as they talked about their day. It worked wonders for them.