Sometimes, you might feel like you just want to step off the merry-go-round of life and get away from the daily stresses and responsibilities. Maybe the tasks ahead of you seem impossible to complete, and you are tired of running yourself ragged in an attempt to balance never-ending demands. You may feel stuck, unable to make decisions or begin your day because there is just so much to do. You might experience moments of panic or panic attacks, in which your heart races, your hands go numb, or your stomach churns. Perhaps you long for a way to get through your days with greater self-assurance and ease.
Understanding stress and how it affects your body may be helpful.
Stress is the body’s natural way of responding to any kind of threat or excessive demand. The threats can be real or perceived – the body doesn’t really know the difference. When the body senses distress, it automatically goes into survival mode as a way of protecting you. At times, stress can be helpful by increasing your focus and energy levels. As long as the stress is within your comfort zone, it can actually enhance your life, helping you meet challenges and achieve goals. However, when stress levels exceed that comfort zone, it is perfectly normal to feel overwhelmed and stuck.
The Effects of Stress Overload
Our autonomic nervous system is specially designed to respond to stress. It begins the process by releasing a flood of stress hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol, which aide in the preparation for emergency action. When it perceives a significant threat, the body kicks into the fight/flight mode to prepare for actions to ensure your survival. This is an important mechanism when a truly life-threatening situation exists. However, chronic stress can trigger the same autonomic responses, and when unchecked, can cause major damage to your mind, body, and sense of peace. Many health problems are caused or exacerbated by stress, including but certainly not limited to:
Physical Symptoms
Pain of any kind
Heart disease
Digestive problems
Sleep problems
Depression
Weight issues
Auto-immune diseases
Skin conditions, such as eczema
Diarrhea or constipation
Nausea, dizziness
Chest pain, rapid heartbeat
Loss of sex drive or sense of pleasure
Frequent colds, compromised immune system
Cognitive Symptoms
Memory problems
Inability to concentrate
Poor judgment
Seeing only the negative
Anxious or racing thoughts
Constant worry
Emotional Symptoms
Moodiness
Irritability or short temper
Agitation, inability to relax
Sense of loneliness and isolation
Depression
Behavior Symptoms
Eating more or less
Sleeping too much or too little
Isolating yourself from others
Procrastinating or neglecting responsibilities
Using alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax
Nervous habits, such as nail biting, pacing, etc.
There Is Another Way
There are many factors that influence your stress levels. And, there are many ways to learn how to better manage your stress. You may feel like the stress in your life is out of your control, but you can always control the way you respond to whatever is going on around you. I invite you to join me in therapy sessions for a personalized approach to better manage your specific stressors and responses. Meanwhile, whether overwhelm sets in the middle of the night, during meeting at work, or in line at the coffee shop, there is a way to feel better in the moment. You can practice these simple steps without drawing attention to yourself or causing a disruption in your environment. When practiced regularly, these techniques make it easier for your body to calm down. You can begin to breath deeper, promote more stabilization, and feel like you are back in control of yourself.
1. Orient To The Present Time
You can start the process of aligning with the present moment by first sitting down and settling into your chair or bed. Notice the support against your body and allow the tension to start to melt from your muscles. Wherever you happen to be, let your eyes wander around the space, just noticing what you notice. You might begin to notice things in the room you haven’t paid attention to in a while, or something outside the window may catch your attention for the first time. You might notice the sound of machinery or traffic outside. Or, maybe the wind blowing through the trees. Try mentally naming what your senses are picking up on. For example, you may think, “I see the beautiful colors in the picture, the wind sounds like a storm may be approaching, the texture of this chair feels scratchy...”
Orienting to the present moment and space is an effective way to start the calming process by slowing everything down and getting out of your head. By concentrating on the reality of the space around you, you can shift your focus away from anxious thoughts.
2. Begin The Grounding Process
Now start to notice the seat you’re sitting in. Turn your attention to the chair (or couch, bed, or whatever you are resting on). Can you feel the places where your body is touching the surface? Are there places where there is more contact or less contact? How about your feet – can you feel your feet on the floor? If this is difficult, try moving a little, perhaps rocking your feet on the floor, rocking your body a little side to side, or gently pressing your back into the chair and then releasing your muscles. What happens if you experiment with relaxing into the chair and then pressing your thighs into your seat to lift up through the upper body?
What else can you notice about the way you are sitting? How are your legs and feet positioned? Are they crossed, straight, or bent? How about your hands and arms? Are they in your lap, touching each other, open, or fisted? Are you leaning in any direction? Is your head tilted or turned? Try to notice these things without judgment.
Be curious! If feeling your body in space seems hard, you might look at your body and see how it’s positioned, then try to feel it. Try challenging yourself by experimenting with sensing your body position with your eyes closed.
You can add an additional element – sensing the space around you. Can you feel the space to your sides, behind you, above you? There is no need to feel as though you’re doing something wrong if any of this is hard for you. See if you can bring your curiosity to your experience and don’t worry if you aren’t getting it right away.
3. Begin Naming Your Physical Sensations
Start with your physical sensations. Avoid making judgment statements. Concentrate on the sensations alone. For example, you may think: I’m noticing my heart is not pounding as much as it was. I’m noticing heat in my arms and legs. My breathing is becoming a little more regular. My head is pounding, especially around my temples.
The beauty of naming what you are experiencing is that it keeps you focused in your body, in the present moment. This allows the activation cycle to move through you and out of you, which aides in the calming process and prevents excessive worry from taking over.
4. Slow Everything Down
Let your breathing slow down. Let your hands open if they are clenched. Let your shoulders drop and your face relax. If you notice your thoughts or judgments arise to your awareness, just welcome them and then release them. Imagine tossing them into a meandering creek on a summer’s day and watch them slowly pass out of sight.
Our thoughts can start looping and causing us worry if we allow them to go unchecked. In this moment, you don’t need to attend to worried thoughts. By just acknowledging and releasing them, you can avoid the urge to resist them, disown them, or push them away. Resisting anything only causes more of it. By embracing slowness, you can allow the thoughts to move through you without intruding or becoming stuck.
5. Start To Notice What Feels Good
Even when we are stressed, in chronic pain, or experiencing anxiety or depression, there are always parts of us that feel okay. Often, we can discover there are even parts of us that feel good, once we turn our attention to them. The problem is that we lose sight of those parts when we place too much attention on troublesome areas. We can become consumed by the negative and unable to see the positive.
Science confirms that by using mindfulness techniques, such as those explained above, we can turn more attention to that which we desire and begin to rewire our brain to become more receptive and aligned with positive emotions, sensations, and experiences. You can feel more in tune with your experiences, more present in the fullness of the moment, and better able to recognize and appreciate the good that exists there.
Frazzled You Can Create Relief and Ease
We all live with chronic stress. But to just write it off and say “that’s life” may not be in the best interest of your health and prosperity. Chronic untreated stress can wreak havoc on your relationships, job performance, sex life, and overall experience of joy and pleasure. Developing consistent ways to control your responses to chronic stress will enable you to develop greater self-confidence and mastery over your own life.
There are many ways to influence how you respond to stress and many ways to begin building greater resilience to the stresses you currently face. In my practice, I have helped countless people develop tools and strategies to create lasting relief. The steps above can be a great start. But, if you find that you need help practicing them, or that you are struggling to incorporate them into your daily life, I can help.
Together, in sessions, we can evaluate your specific stressors, address them directly, and discover what your body needs to revive from the drain chronic stress is having on your life. As you better understand the root causes and signs of overwhelm, you can begin to address feelings of panic, fear, anxiety, and distress before they grow too intense. Regardless of what you are going through or what you’ve experienced in your life, there is a way to nurture your sense of peace and prosperity.
I invite you to contact me here to determine if you would like learn more about treating symptoms of stress and overwhelm.
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