Stress is a crazy thing. There are million and one proverbs, clichés and admonitions about how going through times of trial and tribulation bring out one's true colors or show what someone is made of. And while that's all true, valuable, and potentially reassuring - it often doesn't feel like it (or like it matters) in the moment, nor do I always like to be reminded of that fact. I've mentioned before that my own personal, very unattractive natural tendency when I am out of time, patience, or energy is to become a "dictatorial steamroller." Since I am aware of this proclivity, I try to pay attention to the times when I am getting close to this state and take steps to avoid it, often by treating myself like a two year old and avoiding hANGER, giving myself a timeout, or just going to bed. Although unfortunately, I'm far from completely eradicating myself from this plague, I can say with confidence that simply being aware of situations when I am likely to transform into a dragon has helped a lot in avoiding full blown fire-breathing meltdowns. And I would argue the same is true when it comes to maintaining healthy habits across a variety of different facets of life. If we can recognize our "tells," we can increase our self-awareness and better deal with seasons of stress. In other words, by noticing patterns in our own behavior earlier, we can more deliberately choose the path that we