Has your brain been overstimulated lately?

If you’re human and you haven’t been living in cryostasis then your brain is most likely overstimulated with our most recent world events. Not to mention the last few years of “The Pandemica”. Jeez, can you say, “general anxiety disorder”!

From the moment I wake up and ask Alexa for my morning news brief it is crazy. Conquest (Covid / 4th Industrial Revolution), War, Famine, Death, etc. Ring a bell? The 4 perfect ingredients that our mainstream news outlets so lovingly share with us to keep us “informed”. From my perspective, such news keeps us ensnared in fear rather than informed about life as we know it. The keyword here is, perspective. I’ll come back to that later. Let’s stick to being overstimulated please.

On your mark

So after filtering my morning news into 5 mins of headlines to start off my day responsible, informed, I then log on at work. Within 5 min I am again, overstimulated by the bombardment of texts, chat messages, emails, notifications. Then I must sort through the noise and prioritize what has become truly important that day and what I can actually do, in my personal power, to move things forward. I’m sure I am not alone in my morning routine when engaged with my project delivery clients. Life has become so complicated that the “show” can’t go on. It just comes to a stop, by choice or by burnout.

Get set

Oh, then I may take a lunch break, and feed and walk the dog, and talk to my mother or aunts or uncles or other family or friends that are having a hard time to cope with our new reality and the challenges it brings. By the time I am logged back in for the afternoon I am filled with vertigo from the millions of tasks that need to get done for other people to just survive. Ding ding… another video conference call to manage where no one turns their video on. “Ah, what’s that, we have more problems? What’s this, we have more work to deliver? Oh, what happened, who has left our team this time?” Do you get the picture…?

GO!

By my afternoon coffee I am so spun up from the non stop overstimulated demands on me that all I want to do is GO scream and shout and let it all out. Just go for a walk I think, or a meditation… but I have back to back meetings all afternoon. Everyone is in crisis mode. What will people think if I am not available. Will I lose my job or be perceived as a slacker? More stress and anxiety builds within my brain, and body, from the chronic stimulation. Over and over and over… And I have not even discussed personal commitments, relationships, kids, finances or health yet. WTF right.

How to regulate my brain back to balance

Here’s how I regulate my brain back to balance… my secrete, Micro practices!

I have already come to accept that I am not our holiness the dalai llama nor a yoga instructor nor an occupational therapist. I am a professional who engages in professional activities, that, more often then not, get smacked by Murphy’s Law. So instead of aiming for the stars I go with my gut and aim for smaller, ad hoc self regulation practices and cross-train them. So for example, I would take my coffee break to go sit in my fav yellow longback textured armchair and meditate for five min. Or sit midfully watching the sun rise or set for five min.

I trust my feelings to guide me to which practice or length I need. I would cross train by meditating on a gratitude practice. When done correctly and with intent, the mental and emotional gains are compounded. And the best part is, you don’t need a backiatomy after a practice. Ouff, I used to love cross-fit when I did it but my body is just not there for that anymore. Thankfully my mind is.

5 Self Regulation Micro Practices to calm your brain

Here are my personal five favorite self regulation micro practices that can be done, no excuses, anywhere, anytime and for FREE.

Two to five minute meditation CrossTrained with mindful gratitude practice
Two to fifteen minute deep breathing CrossTrained with Vagas nerve massage practice
Five to ten minute connection with nature (walk) CrossTrained with self care practice (hot chocolate)
Mindful body scan CrossTrained with deep tissue self masssage
Ten – fifteen minutes of focused movement like excercise, yoga or stretching

I trust that you will find the right person-practice fit on your self regulation journey and if you need help along the way, you know who to contact!

Have fun. Keep it light and aim for a healthy habit of progress, not perfection.

_____________________

Enough about me. What do you think of me and my perspectives? Lol.😉 Please, let me know your feedback or questions by using the comments on our social media channel of your choice.

Much love, light and self-regulation.

Cheers,

Jason

“Always be Self-Regulating”