Pavlov rang a bell and then fed his dogs. He did this enough that the ringing of a bell caused the dogs to begin salivating, even if there was no food. It's what's known as a conditioned response.
My boss went to a conference last week and left me in charge of the practice. The whole practice. The constant phone calls, the questions, the scheduling, the emergencies.... the whole nine yards. It is the second time this has happened in about a 6 week period.
Last week, every time I attempted to eat, the phone rang. Tonight at 5pm when for the first time in 176 hours I was completely off the clock and ultimately free, I walked into my kitchen and realized that I wasn't at all hungry, and haven't been actually hungry in days. I have eaten but.... eh.
Apparently my brain has started associating the presence of food with the ringing of the phone. When the phone rings my heart rate sky-rockets, my stomach clenches, and I swear I can actually feel the rush of adrenaline through my veins. The phone in my life rings so often that the sight, smell, or idea of food fills me with anxiety, so my brain has just decided to not want food anymore.
I heal the sick animals, maintain the healthy, and provide support to their owners, but at the end of the day I'm just one of Pavlov's dogs... in reverse.
No comments:
Post a Comment