Catastrophising

[11JB68]

Updh catastrophises and cannot handle stressful situations.
All day yesterday high winds and power outages were predicted.
Just as we were about to go to bed, our power went out.
Updh swore... Three times? Then insisted we start finding candles. (Why, we're going to bed) h: but it's going to be so cold!!!
He makes no move to find flashlights or candles, Ds and I collect them.
H tries to light a candle, drops lit match on carpet. Ugh. Can't figure out how to light the one big candle, I have to do it....
Has me check the power Co online map, power out 10:15, due back at 12:15... Not too bad. Has me check again 10 minutes later....I can't find us on the map..... Power comes back on.
OMG.
The drama.
Thank God for MC. in the past this would have gotten me worked up and we would have played off each other.
Now I'm just calm. Annoyed but calm.

Oh right.... But he's 'the man'.... And he is NOT a child....
Right...

[square]

Wow, yeah.

I have really come to value being in situations with calm, possibly even competent people. But at least calm.

My goodness, the situation could have even been fun. A card game by candlelight. Snuggles in bed.

Lights out isn't (usually) an emergency. You got your phone flashlight, you're good. Get an extra blanket and jump in bed and  talk the night away.

[Prototypian]

I co.oketely understand.   Mine will watch four sources of news at once to view how each local news program covers a problem and compares them.  But it's every single night.   

And tiny things like a broken spatula are a crisis.  A serious worst case scenario!!

[escapingman]

I can relate to this, everything is a catastrophe.  But I have an incident myself very similar to yours. We had hired a cottage in a remote town in yhe mountains,  powercuts are quite often happening there but the entire town lost power. UNPDW panics and shouts at me to find out what's going on, so I drive around the area and see everything is totally dark. When back I ask a neighbour whats going on and he just laughs and tells me it's a power cut. So back in the cottage, getting lots of candles lit and tell her it is just a power cut and the power is prob coming back soon. She panics, of course. I opened a beer and she flips, what if we need to drive somewhere because we are going to die because if this powercut.... closest town was about 2 hours drive away and why would you drive there in the middle of the night anyway.

[blew]

Spouse has done increasingly over the years.  Or maybe I notice it more now.  Hard to tell.  But EVERY interface she has is wrought with problems and they are all at the same STAT level.  Could be the person at the drive-thru at McDonald's or the dogs health or a bill that's 12 seconds late or -- well, whatever.  Everything is a disaster waiting to happen.  It's exhausting beyond belief.  Since she stopped working I've noticed it more, and I wonder how she could possibly deal with the dozens of little "issues" that come up every day at work?  I'm far from perfect, but at our age, you should start to realize that most of this crap doesn't matter!

Add to this the conversational narcissism, in which discussions about inane issues go on (literally) for hours sometimes, rehashing the same topics in excruciating detail.  I want to scream YES, YOU TOLD ME THAT THREE THOUSAND TIMES ALREADY, but I know better than to poke the hornets nest.  An acquaintance stopped by last week and my SO launched into her topic du jour.  Three hours later the rant was still going on.  NOT ONCE does she ask other people about themselves or their issues or problems. And dare I jump in, she cuts me off and continues on.  I can see people's eyes glazing over.

I have come to realize that none of this is going to change...