Ask For Help

I was in a Body Pump class, doing what they call a “clean and press.” That’s where you get your hands up under the barbell and then push it as high as you can over your head. I started to feel dizzy.

My blood pressure tends to be on the low side. So I’m used to this… sort of. When I get dizzy, I’ve learned to lean on something or sit down, so I don’t fall over, and to put my head down if possible.

But this time the dizziness was messing with my thinking abilities. I couldn’t figure out what to do. But I know one thing: I know how to ask for help. I turned to the woman exercising beside me and said, “I feel dizzy. I need you to tell me what to do.”

She looked a bit surprised, but said without hesitation, “Sit down and put your head between your knees.”

So I did. A few minutes later I felt fine. I took some swigs of water and started exercising again. 

What if I’d tried to fake it? Kept going with those clean and presses? I probably would have collapsed, hit my head, or hurt someone else. 

What if I’d tried to figure it out myself in spite of my lowered mental abilities? Maybe I would have been okay. Maybe I would have put the barbell down and just collapsed.

But I know when I’m not doing okay. I know it’s in the interest of people around me that I should be okay. They’ll help me, maybe out of compassion, maybe in the public interest, maybe just to keep from being put in danger themselves.

If you’re not doing okay, it’s in everyone’s best interest for you to turn to someone and say, “I need help.” Don’t press on, don’t fake it, don’t try to figure it out for yourself. 

They’ll help you. And then you’ll be okay again. And maybe you can help somebody else when they need it.