Breathe, it will pass.
As we are approaching the Autumn season, I am sharing some steps to help you shift your mindset when feeling overwhelmed by stress and anxiety or having to face a toxic environment, being at work or in relatioships.
BREATHE
We breathe automatically but most times, we don’t do it well. When we feel stressed and anxious, our breath become irregular and short. Bringing your awareness to the simple act of breathing will make a noticeable difference. By calming the breath, we send the parasympathetic nervous system a signal to calm the body, we deactivate the “fight or flight” mode.
In a toxic environment, withdraw to a quiet area and breathe slowly in and out for a few minutes focusing on lengthening the out breath. That will reset your nervous system. Practice daily for long term benefits.
PRACTICE SILENCE
For many of us silence can be a source of anxiety but when there is a lot going on leaving us overwhelmed as a result, allowing a moment of silence will be most beneficial. Silence brings us back to ourselves and helps create a space, even minor, in a mind crowded by too many thoughts, obstructed by too much agitation. If we deprive ourselves from silence, we stand no chance to carve the space we need to process (thoughts, emotions etc).
Take a few minutes a day and surrender to silence.
INTEROCEPTION
Become aware of how you feel in that moment and in which part of your body you are feeling the emotion. Name these emotions, write them down if it helps, that way you will normalise the feelings and not feel anxious about feeling the way you do.
VISUALISE
Visualise a place that makes you feel safe, and name it with one word of your choice.
Once you have visualised your place, close your eyes and imagine the sensations you’d feel if you were there: the smells, the colours, how touching feels.
Use all your senses.
Take your time visualising and practice it regularly. That way, you will send a signal to your brain to bring calm and serenity back. With practice, you’ll say the word and your inner peace will come back by magic.
NURTURE YOURSELF
Write a list what makes you feel nurtured, creative and happy and do them.
Keep it simple, the aim here is to activate a shift of the mindset, not to overload yourself.
Do something that engages your brain activity, there's no magic formula, the choice is purely personal.
Keep that list handy and close to you, on a piece of paper not far from reach.
IT WILL PASS
Remember that the Universe is constantly evolving, we are fully part of that change even if we tend to forget it. We evolve, navigating the positive and at times, the negative. It’s all part of who we are. Breathe, it will pass.
