Monkey in a man suit

Benny had actually read Darwin once, in college a long time ago, and had heard of sciences like ethology and ecology, but the facts of evolution had never really registered on him. He never thought of himself as a primate. He never realized his friends and associates were primates. Above all, he never understood that the alpha males of Unistat were typical leaders of primate bands. As a result of this inability to see the obvious, Benny was constantly alarmed and terrified by the behavior of himself, his friends and associates and especially the alpha males of the pack. Since he didn't know it was ordinary primate behavior, it seemed just awful to him.

Robert Anton Wilson, Schrödinger's Cat, quoted on p63 of his own Prometheus Rising, available in pdf form at the link

Being a teacher I generally get away with the illusion of being the boss primate, at least in my own head, which is the reality that counts, psychosomatically. This leads to good spirits and good health. But lately this system has broken down slightly, and for the last two or three months I've had two classes a week, out of 20+, in which I come off the worst in the monkey dominance trip. The stress hormones kick in and linger in the system. Chemically, it's an interesting experience, like when I test my system by eating only carbs and getting manic and grumpy, or mix Xanax and alcohol and pass out too soon. Interesting experiences, but personally they suck.

I need to find a workaround for such occasions.