Cooking Therapy

Recently, (the past year) I started cooking more and more, not only the basic home food, but some complicated dishes as well. And I enjoy it, I find it relaxing. When I am busy preparing something, I do not have time to thing about anything else. Cooking sort of became a necessity because my wife got provincial colours in Taekwondo and is preparing to attend the World Championships. She would take the meat out of the fridge in the afternoon, or start the dish and quite often I would prepare what I like or finish off the dish, ready when they return from their training session in the evening.

But my cooking did not start off by accident. I spent two years in Mozambique as an expat where I had to cook for myself, and there I learnt the usefulness of a slow-cooker. Then in June 2014 I experienced a episode of burn-out. Big Time! Burn-out occurs when you are under prolonged stress and is characterised by total exhaustion, (physical, emotional and mental). You tend to loose interest in what you are doing and start to operate on robot mode, or do not function at all.

There is no quick-fix cure for burn-out and it often takes years to recover, therefore I am a recovering burn-out victim. One day at a time, but sometimes we tent to slip back into old bad habits. Change is essential to recover from burn-out. Breaking old habits and routines is a given, without that burn-out will re-surface. The change suggested but the professionals are often drastic, like changing your job, suburb, town even. It means getting active and fit, get a hobby to get your creativity going.  If you cannot do the first 2 then at least make some changes.

So I started cooking as a stress reliever. Cooking allow for sufficient challenge and creativity and keeps you fully occupied. And I enjoy it, even the challenge of making tens of jaffles on a Thursday for orders on a Friday, or cooking pancakes at an event, trying my hand at a potjie for 20 people, or just conjuring up a butter chicken. It keeps me busy, challenge me, and make me proud seeing people enjoying the food.

Quite often, however, I forget why I started cooking, I forget to consciously slow down, and then the burn-out symptoms returns, reminding me where I came from. You know, I should have seen it coming last year, when my morning beverage changed from a single espresso to a double espresso and a Red Bull, just to last till lunch time. But burn-out creeps  up on you, with lots of signs, if only you cared to notice them and take action early enough. But burn-out is for another time. For now I enjoy therapeutic cooking.