Take Yourself off the Boil

In this weeks podcast I want to talk about the perils of running hot. Have you ever noticed that it takes a small flame a long while to heat a pot of water, but once a pot of water is already hot it can be kept simmering by that small flame. Now what if the pot represented you, the water represented your inner thermostat and the flame your day to day stresses. Looking at stress in this way clearly shows that when your already running hot the smallest heat can get you to simmering or even boiling point. The hotter you already are the greater the influence of any additional heat, and the cooler you are the longer it takes for that little flame to have any noticeable  impact at all. The hover between hot and boiling point is hazardous to your health, destructive to your relationships and disastrous to your quality of life.

The key problem with stress is that things of little real significance seem oh-so important, the wood and the trees get all mixed up and making a good judgement is unlikely. Eventually your body having whispered, cajoled and pleaded with you over time will shout 'enough' and bring you to a grinding halt in a variety of awful and attention grabbing ways. But why wait until things get serious or even dangerous. Slowing down and cooling down do not have to be major productivity halting endeavours. initially the very nature of stress will have you thinking that you don't have time, as if it's  destructive or an indulgence to take time out and invest in your self. Yet research is showing us again and again that those who use small units of time to  relax, walk, swim, play with the kids are happier and getting more done that those who are running around trying to get more done without taking a break.

As with all interventions when things are spiralling out of control you have to stop and commit to making some changes - by design rather than by force when your body or mind can no longer take the pressure. Here is one quick and easy way to use your breath to turn down the heat, and if practiced for five to ten minutes a day in your lunch time, in the train, before going to bed, in the car - whenever you choose. Your'll find that gradually your internal thermostat will lower and your'll have more tolerance when external heat and pressure come your way. You don't need any equipment, you don't need to go to a particular location. All you need to do is stop, turn your phone off, drop your shoulders, close your eyes and breath - for just a few minutes. If you practice regularly slowing and deepening your breath your'll signal to your body to stop producing stress hormones and stand down.

Over the next few minutes of breathing slowly and deeply, making your exhalation longer than your incoming breath your heart rate will begin to slow, your blood pressure will drop, your muscles will relax and your mind can enjoy the genuine relief that comes from simply taking a moment out and focusing on your breath.

For further support we have a collection of guided relaxation exercises and breathing techniques to help reduce stress and anxiety available for download in the anxiety slayer store.

Photo by Vélocia