Personal Stress Reset

Stress… it’s everywhere. It makes us irritable, tired, depressed, anxious, frustrated, fill-in-the-blank. But, stress is also the thing that gets us out of bed in the morning (or evening) to go to work, to go somewhere fun or to do our other daily tasks. What do we do when it gets to be too much though? What happens when we are struggling? We reset. How? Read on to find out.

• Before you open your eyes. Before you get out of bed.Take several deep breaths, in and out. Decide how you want to feel today. Let your mind fill in the visuals or even events that reflect how you want to feel. Don’t worry if it feels silly. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between imagining and really experiencing. This is why this works!
• Once you can feel and imagine how your day will be. Take a few more deep breaths and open your eyes. Now you are ready to get going!
• Want to super-power this process? Place a hand on your heart when you start breathing and imagining and keep it there until you get up. Imagine you are breathing in and out through your heart center. This will connect your heart-felt desire with your brain so they are aimed in the same direction – the direction you decide you want to feel into for the day.

Notice when you start feeling stuck, anxious, frustrated, or whatever difficult emotions arise. When you do notice these emotions, take a deep breath and recall the feeling you wanted for your day. Keep breathing deeply until you feel your emotions begin to shift into the ones you wanted. Then, move back into your day. With practice you will get better and better at recognizing when you are feeling emotions that are not what you choose and then consciously shifting into a better state.

When you are about to drift off (even if you have a hard time drifting!) take a few deep breaths in and out. Let your mind scan the day for the positives you experienced. Even if they seem small and inconsequential, they count! How did they feel? What worked and why? Let yourself enjoy the positive feelings of those successful moments. Then drift off when ready.

You might notice that breathing is involved in every tip. This is because the brain is directly wired to your diaphragm, the muscle that controls breathing. Your breathing pattern tells your brain what your emotional state is. If you are breathing deeply and slowing it down your brain thinks you are relaxed, at ease, calm and even content. Even if you aren’t when you start, a few moments of breathing deeply will convince your brain you are in a more positive state and so you will be. Try it. It works!