No ‘thing’ like stress
Stress is nonexistent. I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true. Think about it – you can’t put stress in a wheelbarrow. It isn’t an actual ‘thing’. So, what is it? Stress results from a decision to classify something as being stressful. Stress is a reaction, often an overreaction to circumstances. Usually the intensity of the reaction isn’t uniform or universal. Some people consider flying in an airplane as one of the most stressful things they could experience, while others fall asleep when the plane taxis onto the runway. Same experience; completely different reactions. The difference lies in the perspective.
Body burden
The effects of stress are very real. In fact, stress is recognised as the cause of many ailments we experience today. This is reason enough to consider that you are in control of what you classify
as stressful or not. Doing this puts you in control of your experience, not at the mercy of external circumstances. You choose how you respond to a situation, therefore you allow what is stress in
your life.
The instinctive response to any crisis or challenge is a predictable, hard-wired physiological reaction called your fight-or-flight response. This stress response is designed to elicit action, so we can attend to a real crisis. The problem lies in our tendency to overuse this response in situations that don’t warrant it. It was never intended to be used all the time, it places a burden on the body’s ability to function optimally. If the stress remains long enough, your body continues to produce cortisol to maintain the heightened stress state. Too much cortisol suppresses immune function and interferes with memory function. In this fight-or-flight state the ability to ‘see the big picture’ is lost.
Power of three
You can triumph over your circumstances by making a choice to respond in a powerful and positive way. It comes down to who you choose to BE in any situation. Your state of BE-ing consists of mental, emotional and physiological components. By changing one of these components, you change the whole set to shift the experience of your circumstances.
The mental component of your response is your focus. Your reticular activating system (RAS) is a part of your brain that brings relevant information to your attention. It filters information entering your conscious awareness. Have you heard the term ‘what you focus on expands’? You are bombarded with
millions of bits of information every second, but only process about 126 bits per second. Most of the information vying for your attention is filtered by a process of deletion, distortion and generalisation. You can create your reality by setting your focus on what you want in your life. If you focus on what’s wrong, you’ll get more of what’s wrong. In the end, your focus is a choice and your RAS seeks out what you focus on. The key is to focus on your desires.
Shift your experience by choosing powerful and positive emotions. The field of social neuroscience has found that an empathetic response gets blocked by a stress response. Research by the Institute of HeartMath shows that when we experience emotions of compassion |
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and empathy, our levels of adrenaline and cortisol are greatly reduced. Furthermore, production of the powerful biochemicals serotonin, dopamine and endorphins increases when we experience positive emotions, enhancing overall well-being. We have the choice to change our emotional response; choosing powerful positive emotions effectively improves our quality of life.
Change your experience by changing your physiology (your body). Think of a time when you were feeling particularly tired or lazy. Imagine jumping up cheering, clapping your hands and laughing out loud. What happens? The situation changes and you’ll feel energized and alert. This is the power of shifting your body to lead you to a completely different experience. Try it and experience a simple ‘miracle’.
Think, don’t sink
We all want to be better versions of ourselves, in the end it comes down to choice – how you choose to respond to a
situation. Alter your response to a circumstance and you alter its effect on your life. Make powerful choices for yourself so it isn’t made by default from circumstances or by others around you. Learn how to shift from stress to choice in Think or Sink! (Sterling & Ross Publishers, 2009) H&L
More information at GinaML.com/Think
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