Meeting the Challenges

Life poses challenges all the time. Think of a child who loses her/his parents at a young age with no one to take care of her/him; a young woman who loses her husband in a car accident; parents who bring up children who are physically or mentally challenged; young girls/boys who have to spend long nights in call centres and then catch up on their sleep during the day time. Look around yourself and you will find that life is a big challenge. All of us try to meet these challenges in our own way. Some of us succeed while others succumb to such life stresses. Life challenges are not necessarily stressful. Much depends on how a challenge is viewed. A number 11 batsman in a cricket team will view facing a fast bowler's delivery differently than would an opening batsman, who will look forward to such a challenge. It is said that one’s best comes out when one is challenged. We will like to consider in this chapter how a life condition turns into a challenge or a cause of stress. Further, we will also see how people respond to various life challenges as well as stressful situations.