Showing posts with label Meditation and Mindfulness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meditation and Mindfulness. Show all posts

Sunday 12 June 2022

5 Uncommon Methods that will Instill Calm into Your Life


We all know the conventional ways to achieve calm: meditate, go for a walk, listen to relaxing music, etc., but what about the uncommon ways to do it? For all of you who like to break the mold, here are some unconventional methods to instill calm into your life. 

 

1. Put your Phone on Silent 

 

Or even better, airplane mode. It’s a big ask, so don’t worry if you need to take baby steps to get there. The point of this exercise is that a silent phone increases the chances of achieving a quiet mind. We’re all so distracted by our black screens that we forget to soak up the present moment — so give it a go! 

 

2. Mindful Eating 

 

If you’re puzzled by this one, you’re not alone. Most people like to scarf down their food the second it’s in front of them — very primal of us. But every once and a while, it pays to eat slowly and take in every bite. Focus on the flavors as they marry, the textures, and the joy of being able to eat. That’s called mindful eating! 

 

3. Watch TV 

 

Hold on, watching TV will make me calmer?! Doesn’t everyone say it’s terrible for your mind? Well, we’re talking about watching TV in healthy, moderate doses. That doesn’t mean you should binge-watch TV every day, but when your mind needs a break, it’s perfectly acceptable to put on an episode of your favorite show to relax. 

 

4. Do Something Mundane 

 

Most people don’t get excited about mundane, menial tasks like doing the laundry or washing dishes, but it’s great for the mind. You’re probably used to a lot of thinking in that brain of yours, which means you’re not giving it a lot of time to focus on something without being totally consumed by it. Try it out! 

 

5. Use Art to Achieve Calm 

 

You may not be a junior Picasso (or maybe you are!), but that doesn’t mean you can’t use art to calm your mind. Go to a museum or stare at your favorite picture hanging on your wall. Art does an excellent job of calming people down and bringing them back to a grounded state. 

 

Simple enough, right? No matter what method (or methods) you choose to try out, make sure you’re doing what feels best for your mind and body. This is a personal thing — finding calm should be a happy, worry-free journey. Good luck! 



Sunday 5 June 2022

The Power Of Mindfulness Meditation And A Creative Journal


As you head in to each of your creative sessions you need to have done everything that you can to put yourself in the right state of mind for what is to come. If you do not do this then you will find that your session is a real struggle and you may not come up with any creative ideas at all.

 

In order to overcome this, there are two things that you can do prior to your creative sessions to provide you with the best chance of being rally creative and to come up with the results that you desire. These things are mindfulness meditation and the maintaining of a creative journal.

 

You Need a Clear Mind

 

If you go in to your creative session with your mind full of the clutter of the day then you are not going to get the best out of it. Things happen to us during the day which are best left behind when you are trying to be creative.

 

When you mind is full of other thoughts it is going to be tough to find the necessary brain power to generate creative ideas. You need to clear this mind clutter so that you can focus on coming up with innovative solutions. A great way to clear your mind is to be in the present and forget about the past and the future.

 

Learn and Practice Mindfulness Meditation

 

A lot of people are aware that mindfulness meditation is a great way to clear your mind and ground yourself in the present moment. But they do not practice it because they believe that it is too difficult to do.

 

Mindfulness meditation is a lot easier than you probably think. People all around the world are now using this for a few minutes each day to clear their heads and prepare themselves to be in a calmer and more relaxed state.

 

There are plenty of resources online that will explain what mindfulness meditation is, what it does and how you can learn it. You will find a lot of helpful videos on YouTube that will show you how to practice mindfulness meditation. Don’t make excuses, just learn how to do it and practice regularly.

 

Practice mindfulness meditation before every creative session. You only need to spend a few minutes doing this. It really is effective in clearing your mind and grounding you in the here and now. This is exactly where you want to be for your creative session.

 

The Creative Journal

 

If you are not using a journal right now for recording your thoughts, your goals and the actions that you need to take every day to achieve your goals then you need to start one right now. You do not need a fancy leather-bound journal – just use an ordinary note pad.

 

As you develop your creativity you are going to come up with a lot of creative thoughts. It is vital that you pay attention to these thoughts so you need to keep a record of them so that you can evaluate them properly.

 

When you record all of your creative thoughts in your journal you will be able to reflect on these to see how much progress you have made in the development of your creativity. This is great way to motivate yourself and keep going.



Friday 3 June 2022

5 Steps to Embracing Your Loneliness


Loneliness is something most people try to avoid. But being alone is an inevitable part of life. It happens to everyone at some time or another. It is important to be able to separate solitude from loneliness and to understand what is behind your feelings so you can embrace being alone.

 

1. Work Out the Root Cause of Your Fear of Loneliness

 

Some scientists believe loneliness is a basic emotion on a par with fear and anger. For millions of years, survival relied on being part of a group; being alone was risky. But now, a fear of loneliness can keep us in toxic relationships, unfulfilling jobs, and bad marriages. Identify what’s behind your fear of loneliness, and you can start to work on it. 


2. Learn to Understand your Loneliness

 

Loneliness comes in many different guises. It can be temporary situational loneliness where you find yourself without company or help. Or you can be going through a life crisis that results in more extended social isolation. A relationship breakdown, losing your job, or being seriously ill can all make you feel completely cut off from love and support. 

 

3. Appreciate Solitude

 

Solitude is quite a different state from loneliness. Artists, philosophers, and writers over the centuries have sought out solitude to think deeply and widely and to create their best work. Solitude can be a comfort in an overcrowded life. When you are by yourself, you can expand into being your true self. 

 

4. Confront your Deepest Fears

 

Loneliness can be a product of the fundamental fear of separation that goes back to infancy. Separation means being vulnerable, having no one to rely on except yourself. This is the loneliness that realizes that in the end, there is nothing between you and the stars, no one to rescue you. That sort of existential fear can be scary. What are your deepest fears about being lonely? Identify them, acknowledge them, and take away some of their power over you. 

 

5. Use Self-Actualizing Practices to Overcome Loneliness

 

Techniques like yoga, tai chi, and meditation can help you reconnect with your deepest self. Sitting alone in meditation separates you from the negative thought spirals and feelings that can make you feel so miserable. 

 

A loving-kindness meditation practice can help you replace feelings of separation with feelings of love and connection. Give it a try:

 

  • Sit quietly and focus on your breath. 
  • Breathe in, think ‘May I be happy.’
  • Breathe out, think ‘May I be loved.’
  • Breathe in, think ‘May all my suffering be healed.’
  • Breathe out, think ‘May I be at peace.’

 

Eventually, repeat the mantra, thinking of people who may be lonely at this time, replacing ‘I’ with ‘you.’

 

Finish by sending positive thoughts to all beings and repeating ‘May all beings be happy. May all beings be loved. May the suffering of all beings be healed. May all beings be at peace.’

 

This simple practice helps you feel connected to all of life whenever you do it.

 


5 Ways to Ensure Loneliness Doesn’t Turn into Depression


Everyone feels lonely from time to time. It’s a normal part of the human experience. But some people are more vulnerable to slipping from loneliness into depression. Or there can be hard times in your life when feeling lonely is only one step away from isolation and depression. 

 

People who are at risk of depression typically feel isolated and lonely; they have low self-esteem that can easily tip into more extreme feelings of self-blame and guilt, even self-disgust. And these negative thought patterns can lead to full-blown depression. If you’re having bad feelings about yourself, feeling lonely and worthless, here are some things you can do to head off the risk of depression. 

 

1. Boost Your Social Support Network

 

Isolation increases the tendency to self-blame. Connection and social contact can go a long way to helping you alleviate your loneliness and get a different perspective on the world. Reach out to friends, colleagues, and family to increase the positive connections in your life. 

 

2. Practice Mindfulness

 

Mindfulness helps you deal with what is in front of you right now. Developing a mindfulness practice can help you accept your thoughts and feelings without judgment. Simply by observing what is happening around you, focusing on what you can see, hear, feel, smell, and taste will help you break out of your negative thought patterns. 

 

3. Practice Self-Compassion

 

People who are caught up in feelings of negative self-worth are often extremely hard on themselves. Allow yourself a little imperfection. Be kind and change that internal monologue to one less punitive. 

 

4. Change Your Self-Talk

 

Have a look at your internal soundtrack. Are you full of self-recrimination? Do you magnify your flaws and faults? Now, would you talk to a friend like that? Rewrite that script into something more positive and self-affirming. If that is too hard to think about right now, try some of the books, apps, or websites that offer affirmations.

 

5. Use Emotional Reappraisal to Boost Your Self-Esteem

 

With a little practice, you can learn techniques to regulate your feelings and turn your self-esteem around. Depression often manifests in ruminating on the negatives in your life. You can use this focus to your advantage when you practice reappraisal.

 

Reappraisal is a cognitive-behavioral technique that allows you to reframe negative thoughts, flipping them to a more positive view. Instead of feeling paralyzed and crushed by life, you can take back control and develop more resilience. 

 


7 Types of Loneliness According to Psychologists


Loneliness is something you can’t avoid in life. There will be times when you feel lonesome, and you can live a happier life if you learn how to deal with it when it happens. To make that an easier process, psychologists have identified seven different types of loneliness.

 

1. ‘New Kid’ Loneliness

 

Like being the new kid at school, there are times in your life when you’re in a completely new situation. Whether it’s a new job, a new city, or a new school, you’re likely to feel lonely in the beginning.

 

2. Not Fitting in Loneliness

 

This is the loneliness that strikes when you feel different from the people around you. You may be an introvert in a team of extroverts. Maybe your values aren’t shared with the people around you. You feel separate and different. 

 

3. Lack of Romance Loneliness

 

When you don’t have a partner, it can seem like everyone else in the entire world has a significant other. Or maybe you do have a partner, but you feel disconnected. That’s lonely. 

 

4. Missing a Pet Loneliness

 

There’s no company like that of your pet. Maybe you’re missing your dog, cat, or gerbil. Pets can provide a special connection, and when it’s not there, you really miss it. 

 

5. Too Busy for Me Loneliness

 

There are times in your life when it feels like you’re not a priority for anyone. People get busy with their own lives and leave you feeling stranded and alone. 

 

6. Toxic Fringes Loneliness

 

Worse than busy friends are toxic ‘friends’ who get their energy from belittling you or making you feel inadequate. If you don’t feel supported by your friends, or you feel you can't really trust them, they are not good friends to have in your life. 

 

7. Lack of Company Loneliness

 

Sometimes loneliness can come simply from not having anyone to hang out with. Someone just to share space and be with. It doesn’t matter if you’re busy at work or are out partying every night. A lack of a quiet presence can make you feel deeply lonely. 

 

Once you've worked out what type of loneliness you’re feeling right now, you can take steps to address it. For example, if you’re missing having an animal in your life, you can adopt a pet or volunteer at the local animal rescue center. 

 

Make time in your life for meaningful relationships, not the ones that don’t feed your soul. Look for people you share values or interests with, and slowly you will make connections that will banish loneliness. 

 


Tuesday 31 May 2022

Are You Curious About Meditation?


Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard about meditation, its different practices, and the various health and mental benefits of meditating and for good reason. It's been in the news frequently, there are plenty of books, apps, audio recordings, and classes about meditation out there, and you may have become curious about this ancient technique that's making a comeback in modern times. Let's explore what you can do to learn more about meditation and most importantly, how to give it a try. 

 

Learning More About Meditation

 

The internet is a great place to start looking for more information about meditation. It may be how you discovered what you’re reading right now. You'll find plenty of information about meditation, its long history, the various forms of it, and of course some direction and instructions for getting started. This isn’t a bad place to start. You’ll get the basics and enough information to dip your toes in with a simple meditation practice. 

 

You can also find a lot of great books about meditation. Head on over to Amazon, your local bookstore, or the library and pick up a book or two on meditation. There are also some great apps out there with guided meditations. Search for meditation in your phone’s app store.

 

How To Start Meditating

 

You can find some simple guided meditations online, as audio recordings and the likes. Another great option is, of course, the apps I mentioned. They are a great source of guided meditation and the apps will help you increase your meditation time as you go along. They are a great starting point. From there you can explore other options like breathing meditations for example. 

 

One of the simplest forms of meditation is to become aware of your breath. Sit comfortably, calm your mind, and focus all your attention and conscious thought on breathing in and out. It’s harder than it sounds and takes a bit of practice, but once you get comfortable with this particular exercise, it’s a form of meditation you can do anytime, anywhere. 

 

Above all, I encourage you to look into meditation and give it a try. It's a wonderful way to combat stress, improve your quality of life and do something positive for your mental and physical health. Try it and see if meditation is right for you. If you don’t particularly enjoy guided meditation, try chanting, transcendental meditation, or breathing meditations. There are so many different traditions and practices out there. If you keep an open mind, I’m sure you’ll find the one that’s right for you. 

 


Establishing Strong Meditation Habits


Creating new habits isn’t easy and getting into the habit of meditating regularly is no different. Yet taking the time to establish this habit of daily meditation has so many benefits that carry into all aspects of your life. You’ll feel calmer and more collected. You’ll be able to concentrate better, show more patience, and live in the moment. Meditation is even good for your health and can help reduce stress. In short, making meditation a habit is a very good idea. 

 

Here are a few tips to help you get there. 

 

Make It Part Of Your Routine 

 

It’s much easier to create a new habit when you make it part of your daily routine. This is why meditating first thing in the morning works so well. Your daily meditation becomes part of what you do to get ready in the morning. Try meditating after you get out of the shower or even before you get out of bed in the morning. Set your alarm to go off 10 minutes earlier and start your day with a short meditation session. Since it is part of an already established routine, it will quickly become a habit. 

 

Stick To The Same Time And Set An Alert 

 

If including your daily meditation practice into an existing routine isn’t an option, make a new one. It’s helpful to stick to roughly the same time each day when establishing a new habit. In the beginning, you may find it difficult to get into the swing of things so set an alert on your phone to remind you to meditate.

 

Another helpful tip is to commit to this new meditation habit for 30 days. Check them off on a calendar and do what you can not to miss a day. At the end of the 30 days, you will have started to establish the new habit and sticking to it going forward will be much easier. 

 

There’s An App For That 

 

Last but not least, consider using a meditation app. You can find them in the app store for your favorite mobile device and most of them are free to try. The basic version may be just what you need to start establishing the meditation habit. The apps keep things interesting with new guided meditations for each day and let you track your progress. It will also remind you to meditate with an alert on your phone. Give it a try and see if using an app helps you establish a strong meditation habit.

 


How To Start Meditating


Getting started with meditation is a lot easier than you may think. There isn’t any special equipment you need to buy or classes you should be taking. While buying a book, a guided meditation audio recording or an app for your smartphone are certainly options, you don’t even have to do that to get started. I’ll share everything you need to know to get started meditating right here in this post. 

 

Start by getting comfortable in a spot that’s as free of distractions as possible. You want to sit down either on a chair with your feet firmly planted on the ground, or sitting cross-legged on the floor. If you sit on the floor, you’ll be more comfortable if you sit on a cushion. It’s important that you can sit in whatever position you choose comfortably and that you’re keeping your back straight. Slumping may make you sleepy while you meditate, and bad posture may cause you discomfort after a while. 

 

Before we start with the actual meditation, let’s get back to distractions. In the beginning, you want to cut as many of them out as possible. Choose a quiet spot where no one will interrupt you. Turn off the ringer on your phone, close the blinds if you think it will help to create a calm and soothing space. You won’t always have to go through all this trouble to meditate because, after a little practice, you’ll be able to do the little meditation exercise I’m about to share with you anytime, anywhere. But like any new skill, meditating can be a little hard in the beginning. It sounds simple enough, but it’s easy to get distracted. That’s why it’s important to set yourself up for success by cutting out any distractions you can. 

 

Here’s how to meditate. Sit down, close your eyes, and focus on your breath. Notice how the air flows in and out of your nose and mouth. Try to think of nothing else. This is the hard part and something that takes practice. Start meditating for a few minutes here and there and increase the time as you move along. Don’t judge yourself when your thoughts stray. Keep bringing yourself back to the sensation of the breath anytime you notice that you’re thinking of something else. 

 

That’s all there’s to it. Getting started with meditation is simple, but like any new skill, it takes practice. Be patient with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Stick with it and keep practicing these new meditation skills. You’ll be glad you did.

 


How to Deal With a Difficult Emotion Using Mindfulness


Mindfulness has a great many uses and is often prescribed by self-help gurus, doctors, writers and others as a tool anyone can use to improve their mental health.

 

Often these focusses on the long-term benefits of being more present and aware. At the same time though, mindfulness can also be used like a scalpel to deal with more acute problems. Here we will look at how it can be leveraged for instance to tackle specific emotions as they arise.

 

Turning Towards Emotions

 

Normally when we experience negative emotions, we react either by trying to ‘fight them’ or by trying to suppress them. This can be described as almost ‘turning away’ from our emotions to try and deny them their power over us.

 

Unfortunately, this ultimately tends to result in our becoming more stressed or upset as the emotions bubble under the surface, or as we frustrate ourselves in trying to fight them.

 

Instead, though, mindfulness teaches us to turn towards our emotions. What this means, is that you are going to listen to the thoughts and feelings you’re experiencing and then simply acknowledge them. Now you say ‘I am stressed’, ‘I am embarrassed’ or ‘I am upset’. Don’t be ashamed or upset that emotion exists but simply recognize that you are currently in that state.

 

People get upset sometimes. People get angry sometimes. But if you’re simply aware of your condition, then you can be aware that perhaps the thoughts you’re thinking aren’t completely objective. What’s more, you should keep hold of the knowledge that emotions aren’t permanent. In other words, you’re feeling angry right now and as such your thoughts shouldn’t be taken too seriously. But in a few hours, you will likely feel better and then the world will seem like a brighter place again.

 

This creates a subtle but powerful shift. No longer is the world a terrible place and thus you are upset, now you are upset and thus the world seems like a terrible place. The difference is that you now know that belief is not true.

 

Debriefing

 

What’s more, being aware and accepting of your emotions in this way will allow you to assess them in a kind of ‘debriefing’ and to look at what triggered them, how you dealt with them and what they made you think and do. The more you break down and intellectualize your emotions, the more you will find you gain control over them.



Monday 9 May 2022

How Meditation Can Help You Overcome Your Fears


Fear and anxiety can be overpowering and keep you from accomplishing tasks. Fortunately, there is a better way to overcome your fears through the ancient art of meditation. Anyone can achieve this through guided practice and time. I'll explain to you how meditation can help you overcome your fears in this article so you can conquer it. 

 

One of the main aspects of fear is brought on by intimidation of the event or thought that does not subside until after the fact. Through mediation, the mind becomes quieted from the over-activity that feeds into fear. It allows a person to detach one's self from the negative emotion that is being triggered. In order to learn how meditation can help you overcome your fears you must first master the skill required to become centered. 

 

Meditation has been scientifically proven to effectively treat stress and anxiety, two factors that are commonly associated with fear. By learning the art of meditation you will be able to take control of your mental state and reach the calming response that will allow you to conquer your fears. Meditating trains your brain to respond differently to the negative thoughts and emotions that automatically occur when fear is brought on.

 

This ancient practice requires one to clear the mind of all thoughts. This may take time to achieve, but even practicing for short moments at a time will help you to practice regular meditation. The main principal to meditating is to focus on one thing, usually a calming and relaxing technique. The easiest way to achieve this is by concentrating on taking breaths.

 

To begin, find a comfortable space that is quiet to sit or lay down. Close your eyes and try to erase all negative thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Take in a deep breath and slowly exhale. Focus on your breaths as you slowly inhale then slowly exhale. Release the negative energy that is contributing to your fears as you exhale. Continue taking slow, deep breaths, concentrating on making the next breath even slower than the one before. 

 

As you remain calm and concentrate on breathing, you are taking control to quiet the mind. Occasionally, a disruptive thought may occur. Rather than focus on that thought and letting it overcome your mental focus, let it go. Strive to maintain a passive attitude to dismiss any thoughts that may distract you from your goal of meditation. 

 

Learning how meditation can help you overcome your fears will allow you to desensitize yourself from the internal or external stimuli that brings on the feelings of fear. You become aware of the impending thought or concern and are able to control your mental focus in order to detach yourself from it. 

 


Sunday 8 May 2022

How to Get Started With Meditation


Meditation has a huge number of incredible benefits, it decreases stress, it improves the memory, it aids mental calmness and much more.

 

And on his podcast, author Tim Ferriss finds that the one thing that most of his high-performing guests have in common is meditation.

 

The only problem is that meditation is also very difficult to get started with, or at least that’s the perception. Meditation often seems almost ‘mystical’ and can come with religious connotations. It involves a big commitment of time and a lot of discipline. And many people will work hard at it and still not see any results.

 

But it doesn’t have to be that way. If you’re keen to give meditation a go and to see the results for yourself, here are some ways to get started:

 

The Right Approach

 

The first tip is simply to approach meditation in the right way and to have the right expectations. If you’re expecting to become enlightened overnight, then you’ll be disappointed. Likewise, you shouldn’t expect that something is going to ‘happen’. 

 

Instead, try to view meditation, to begin with at least, as a tool for helping you relax and just feel a little more at ease. The idea here is to let your thoughts pass by without engaging with them and to thereby get a ‘break’ from stress and anxiety and busy thoughts. Eventually, this can become a very relaxing place to ‘escape’ to whenever you need to take five.

 

And if you practice it regularly, the benefits will start to come.

 

With this in mind, try not to be too harsh on yourself. You’re allowed to scratch your face and you’re allowed to occasionally have distracting thoughts, just keep recentering and keep bringing yourself back.

 

The Right Strategy

 

To do this then, try just sitting down somewhere quiet and for ten minutes let your mind relax. Don’t engage with thoughts and instead just be aware of your body in space, and of any sounds you might notice in the background. Don’t ‘do’ anything, just ‘be’.

 

If you find this hard, then you can use something external to focus the mind. That might mean counting your breaths, or it might mean watching a candle flame. Another method is to use ‘worry beads’ which you can roll between a finger and thumb absent mindedly.

 

Tools

 

Another great tool to help you get the hang of meditation faster is the Headspace app. This app provides simple meditation sessions that you can digest in small chunks and will talk you through mindfulness. Another option is to use something like Mindwave. Mindwave is an EEG machine that can read your brain waves and thereby assess the level of activity in your mind. This is a very useful tool for gamifying the process of meditation, but it’s not cheap so keep that in mind.

 

In fact, you can even try using virtual reality in order to combat stress and that would allow you to visit a ‘happy place’ in a much more tangible way!

 


Why Stress is Really Bad for You


You’ve probably been told before that stress is really bad for you. It’s something that is constantly rammed down our throats and we’re constantly being reminded how stress can cause heart problems, cause weight gain and generally cause all manner of problems.

 

This is not news then. But what we don’t get told so often is precisely why stress is so bad for us or what it actually does to negatively impact on our health. Read on then and we’ll look at the reasons why stress is actually such a problem and what you can do to prevent it, or at least to limit the negative consequences.

 

Stress and Your Physiology

 

The first thing to note is that stress has a profound and direct effect on your physiology. That is to say that it increases your heart rate, it increases muscle tension and it causes your blood to actually thicken. All of this is intended to make us more efficient at combat and better able to run away in order to escape danger. This is all controlled by the body releasing specific hormones, and those include dopamine, adrenaline, cortisol and glutamate among others. These are our ‘stress hormones’ (though some of them are more accurately described as neurotransmitters).

 

As the heart rate increases and the blood vessels dilate, more blood is sent specifically to the muscles and to the brain with the intention of enhancing focus and physical performance.

 

This is great news again for fighting and for getting away from danger. But what it also means is that blood is being directed away from your other systems, away from your immune system for example and away from your digestion. When you’re being chased by a lion, or falling off a mountain, those things just don’t really matter quite so much!

 

The Long-Term Problem

 

The problem then comes when this is allowed to continue over a longer period of time. In the wild, chronic stress didn’t really exist: we wouldn’t have to worry about things like debt or having a mean boss! 

 

And when stress doesn’t go away, that means that your immune system and your digestion never get the attention they need. This is why you can end up getting heartburn or becoming ill when you’re constantly stressed.

 

Meanwhile, your body is consistently releasing adrenaline and your heartrate is consistently beating hard. Eventually this can become a problem as well as you become more and more likely to suffer a heart attack. And remember, your blood pressure has also gone up, making you significantly more likely to experience very high blood pressure.

 

Likewise, this prolonged state of arousal can lead to a number of other issues. For instance, the heart working this hard for this long can potentially put a lot of strain on you and maybe even lead to a heart attack. Likewise, the constant secretion of adrenaline can eventually lead to ‘adrenal fatigue’. At this point, the body has exhausted its supply of adrenaline, leaving you exhausted and potentially even depressed.

 


Why Stress Isn’t Always a Bad Thing, and How to Tap Into a Flow State


Your brain releases a large number of hormones and neurotransmitters in response to your cognition. When you are in danger, this leads to the release of dopamine, adrenaline and serotonin to help make you more alert, stronger and faster.

 

This is the fight or flight response and it’s you at your most powerful.

 

The problem is that many of us are stressed a lot of the time now and we don’t know how to turn off that fight or flight response. Thus, we try to eliminate stress and think we would be a lot happier if we could.

 

But the reality is that stress isn’t a ‘bad thing’. Rather, stress is a valuable tool that we should tap into when necessary. The key is not to eliminate stress but rather to control it. In this post, we will look at some ways you can do that.

 

What is a Flow State?

 

A great example of stress as a positive thing is the flow state. Flow states are states of heightened concentration, increased focus and lightning reflexes. Often, they are engaged when we partake in extreme sports, or when we’re completely focused on our work or a conversation.

 

But essentially, the neurotransmitters associated with flow states are very similar to those associated with stress. The only real difference is that you are producing more anandamide (the ‘bliss’ hormone) and more serotonin. In other words, the only real difference is that you are enjoying the experience rather than being afraid of it.

 

So, if you can tap into that when you’re next stressed, then in theory you can experience those same heightened reflexes and attention whenever you need them.

 

The key is simply to try and see the stressful situation not as something scary but rather as an opportunity to learn and to develop yourself further. View it as a challenge and your body will adapt accordingly.

 

Eustress

 

Another example of ‘positive stress’ is what’s known as eustress.

 

Eustress is the type of stress that motivates us to do things when we need to. For example, eustress is the type of stress you experience when you have an exam coming up. This may not feel very nice, but that stress is actually what stops you from spending all day sleeping and motivates you to get up and revise. Studies show that people with no stress response don’t succeed as well in life and end up letting their talents go to waste.

 

This is something to note next time you need a kick up the rear, just remind yourself why what you’re doing is important and why you need to focus on it. If you can do this, then you can tap into the positive power of stress and stop seeing it as your enemy.

 

The rest of the time? Just try to distance yourself from that stress response and tell your body ‘Thanks but no thanks’. If you remind yourself why you don’t need to be stressed, often this is enough to do it!

 


5 Reasons You Need to Stop Stressing NOW


If you’re currently feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and burned out, then you are certainly not alone. This is pretty much the status quo for countless millions of people around the globe.

 

But that doesn’t make it okay! In fact, it makes it even more important that we explore the reasons for this stress and work out ways to stop it.

 

Here are five reasons why you shouldn’t just ‘put up’ with serious stress.

 

It Makes You Unhappy

 

Not only does stress make you extremely unhappy in the moment – kind of by definition – but it can also lead to longer term issues with your mental health such as depression, anxiety, and mental fatigue.

 

When you feel low, anxious, and depressed, the world will feel as though it has no color. In order to really enjoy the things you’re doing – you need to allow yourself to.

 

It Damages Your Immune System

 

Stress forces the body to redirect blood and oxygen away from the organs and toward the muscles. Your body assumes that if you’re very stressed, you must be in danger. Hence you are more likely to need your biceps than your spleen!

 

Problem is, that this then means that your immune system stops working as well as it should – leaving you open to attacks from harmful bacteria and germs. The result is that you’ll get sick more often, the longer you are highly stressed.

 

In the long term, stress can actually be dangerous and even cause fatal illnesses.

 

It Prevents Nutrient Absorption

 

Likewise, stress causes blood to be directed away from your digestive system (hence the feeling of getting ‘butterflies’). That then means you absorb nutrients less effectively.

Over time, this can result in serious malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies, resulting in a host of other issues.

 

It Causes You to Make Mistakes

 

When you are stressed, you will struggle to focus on the task in hand. Simply, whatever it is you’re worried about is going to seem more important.

 

The more you stress, the more mistakes you’re likely to make and this can lead to all kinds of complications and issues. 

 

It Damages Relationships

 

Stress can make you short tempered, it can rob you of the energy you need for socializing, and it can result in you being less pleasant to be around. This has knock on effects and can place strain on your relationships.

 

If you don’t fix your stress for yourself, think about the impact it’s having on your children or other loved ones.