In our busy lives it’s easy to get caught up in the cycle
of doing, worrying about what’s still to do, more doing and so on. Distractions
from all around can add to the stresses of daily life and an overload of
information can leave us feeling drained. Add in artificial lighting, pinging emails,
sitting at desks and so on and life can be a big rush from one thing to
another.
I wrote a blog post last week about being too busy to be
mindful as I realise that the act of suggesting trying something new can in
itself be a stressful thing! These blog posts intend to bust some of the more common misconceptions around mindfulness and show how mindfulness is different for each and every person. There will be things that resonate and others that don't.
I’d like to share
some examples of activities that can be practised to help with
stressful/challenging situations. Research has shown that regular mindfulness
practices can help during times of intense stress which can trigger panic
attacks; very intense and frightening experiences. Mindfulness practices can help us to 'zoom out' and see the bigger picture—like
watching the whole theatre, not just what is on the cinema screen. When we do
this, we realise the stressful situation is part of our experience, it is not 'who we are'. That’s easier said
than done, but any perspective we can get during times of stress is likely to
help ease the intensity and duration.
As meditation offers relief from stress and challenge, the more you meditate, the better you’ll become at grounding
yourself and observing your thoughts from a distance, like watching storm
clouds pass by. With time and practice, you can train your mind to acknowledge
these feelings without being overwhelmed. Each time you practice mindfulness during challenging moments, you strengthen your mental muscles.
And the more you train, the better you can handle future panic attacks or any
other challenges.
These are some strategies that can be helpful to use in
daily life during times of stress:
3-3-3 rule : name three things you can see, three sounds you can hear and move three different body parts ( can be as simple as wiggling a finger/tapping foot/stretching hand)
5-5-5 rule: breathe in for 5, hold for five, release for five then identify five things you can see, 5 sounds you hear and five objects around you that you can touch.
However, if you are in an intensely stressful situation, being super
aware of everything could make you feel even more panicked. During a time like
this, controlled breathing or other mindfulness practices might be a better fit
for you in that intense moment.
Deep, measured
breathing can be one of the most effective ways to
regain composure during a panic attack. Techniques like the 4-7-8 breathing
method, where you inhale for 4 seconds, hold the breath for 7 seconds, and
exhale for 8 seconds, can help reset your nervous system.
Another popular method is the 5-4-3-2-1 technique, which makes you identify 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch,
3 you can hear, 2 you can smell, and 1 you can taste.
Nasal breathing is often used in endurance activities and alternating nostril breathing can be very effiective at reducing stress ( see here )
As stated
previously, mindfulness can help with stress reduction and there are Mindfulness
Based Stress Reduction courses (MBSR)
which focus more on this.
For me I have found
the STOP approach the easiest one to remember (stop, take a breath, observe and
proceed with caution and compassion) along with visualisation techniques that I
came across whilst taking part in a PQ course a few years ago (https://www.positiveintelligence.com/ ) During a challenging conversation I try to visualise the other
person as a child and this can help reduce feelings of anxiety, stress or anger
( and for me works better than the old standard imagine them naked) The
thinking behind this is that when one thinks of a happy childhood memory it
brings a sense of wellbeing and calm, so by thinking of that person as a child
who was happy and carefree it can give the time to respond in a more measured
and compassionate way.
Or to walk away! Assertiveness is a good
thing and can be done in a non- aggressive way 😉
There really is no one fits all approach.
Did you know we breathe more than 600million times in a lifetime. It's something that we do without giving it a second thought for most of the time. But breathing exercises can heip in so many ways.
More to be written on this for sure...
