STRESS is prevalent in all our lives, it's universal. We've all said we're "stressed out" at some point and whilst there are the odd few of us who thrive upon it, for many it can hinder us and make finishing even the very simplest of tasks difficult.
"It just makes you realise the stress of work isn't worth it, I spent all my time trying to make other people happy."
One person who found stress halted her daily life was 33-year-old Shauna Dragonetti. Stress quite literally stopped her in her tracks.
Stress is a feature in all our lives
"You just don't realise how dangerous stress can be," she explains to me. "I pushed myself too much and let it get on top of me. My whole life revolved around work and I was living on stress and didn't take notice."
Aren't we all guilty of this? Even as I write this I'm stressed out and feeling my heart rate accelerate as I try to tick off my never ending list of work and articles to be finished before my looming deadline.
Yet for Shauna the stress she felt whilst running her own hair extension business in her hometown of Belfast was more severe than most. It gave her a life-threatening brain haemorrhage that left her hospital bound for two months and she was lucky to survive.
"In June last year I was working overtime on a couple of hair pieces. It's very competitive in this industry and I was working so hard. I went to go home and I collapsed," she describes to me.
Shauna Dragonetti has turned her stress-induced brain haemorrhage into a positive
"I was told there was a good chance I wouldn't make it through. I was a vegetable. It just makes you realise the stress of work isn't worth it, I spent all my time trying to make other people happy. That was the best part of my work, dealing with people but ultimately it led me to being stressed," Dragonetti recollects to me. Her words strike a chord, as I'm sure many of us are guilty of letting work and stress take over and running ourselves ragged to be able to meet the demands of others.
Dragonetti continues, "I was in hospital and completely bed ridden. I had 21 days of medication and it was touch and go. I had a 1 in 2,000 chance of coming out okay. I'm really lucky and it makes me think there was a reason for it all to have happened."
Dragonetti must be one of the most optimistic people I've ever met. As she goes into more detail regarding the extent of her illness I'm amazed at how she sees it as a positive and how it's made her reassess her life for the better.
Semi-permanent make up"I was in a ward with six other girls and they were missing their hair and looking for ways to cover up their scars; I just wanted to help. Camouflage their scars or help them with hair extensions. I just feel like this was all meant to be, and it's something I was meant to do. It gave me a reason to fight and kept my brain active." Dragonetti's positive attitude is almost awe-inspiring.
"I used to have to beg to get my laptop back off my family as they were worried I'd be doing work and stressing myself out. I was on Facebook and this advert popped up for beauty courses in Manchester and it gave me something to look forward to, and to work towards.
"I had a fire in my belly; this was something I was going to work towards. My family were so worried about me having to fly over and things but I even had the attitude that if I die on the plane then I die on the plane," Dragonetti laughs at this point.
Her bubbly personality and positivity, as clichéd as that sounds, is what got her through to being well enough to attend her first three-day course in Manchester.
"My parents were calling me as soon as I landed and they kept calling the hotel I was staying at constantly; they were worried sick. Yet I just felt like something was fitting into place."
Dragonetti studied for three days in Manchester at The Advanced Aesthetics Training Academy. Formerly the Semi-Permanent Make Up Academy, the school offers training courses at varying levels for complete beginners to the more experienced.
Shauna's new salon in Belfast
"Everyone on the course and the teachers got on. It was the first time I felt like myself in ages. I started the course nervous at first but I was encouraged and everyone was so friendly. I felt 100% confident when leaving."
"I've flown back over and we're all friends now and I've come back to study further courses. I'm sure they must be getting sick of me as I just keep coming back. They're like family and I just can't thank them enough for turning my life around.
"I just count myself so lucky...although I have yet to win the lottery!" She jokes.
Since leaving her first course in Manchester, Dragonetti has gone from strength to strength including moving to a bigger and better premises.
"It's just meant to be," she says. "I was asking a local tattooist for advice and he asked me if I wanted to take over his premises as he was moving, that way he didn't have to give way to competition. So I took it over."
Dragonetti's new business, Hair Angels, is expanding and growing and Dragonetti continues to study with The Advanced Aesthetics Training Academy. "I've done several courses now and just want to continue to help people."
Follow Niamh Spence on Twitter at @missnspence
The Advanced Aesthetics Training Academy website can be found here.
To find out more information about Shauna's business, Hair Angels, visit their Facebook page here.
