What’s your chemical soup mix?

Photo Els ‘t Hooft: used with permission

One of my favorite parts in giving a workshop, training or a presentation, is when I get to the ‘chemical soup mix’ part. I truly believe that when one understands what is going on physiologically, as a result of a stress reaction, then we’re less inclined to let our response hijack us.

Did you know that when we have a stress reaction – say you run out of hot water while your hair is covered in shampoo; or you spill hot coffee on your newly laundered pants on your way to an important meeting; or your teenager is two hours past their curfew; or you’re on a walk in a nature reserve and come across this very large bear – that in the instant in which we ‘lose’ it, about 1400 biological, biochemical processes take place?

A Choreographed Symphony

YES, you’re reading this right – about 1400! Almost instantaneously. Without us having to ‘do’ anything. We are so amazing. Our autonomic nervous system kicks in and the brain starts choreographing a whole new symphony of reactions. Which is absolutely great. This is exactly what we need when the bear confronts us during our walk in that nature reserve. But listen up – it’s not such a supportive reaction when it’s happening for non-life threatening reasons, like worrying about things we can’t control. Or creating fiction for the future. Or beating ourselves up about things that happened in the past. Or letting someone push our buttons.

When we have a stress reaction that’s not for a physiological reason – in other words there isn’t a bear we’re being confronted with, or a car isn’t about to run us down – then we need to be able to choose our response. It’s called emotional agility. Most of our emotions don’t just ‘happen’ to us, though it often feels they are. We perceive something as being threatening and just by thinking that it is, our brain kicks into stress mode, conducting its business as if we were truly under a threat.

Why is this Important?

A body experiencing a chronic chemical stress soup mix is going to wear out much faster than one which has a supportive chemical soup mix with lots of feel-good hormones. Our creative, logical thinking skills aren’t maximized, our memory is affected (where are my car keys!), our immune system is affected. These are just a few of the consequences of not learning how to self-regulate our emotions.

Learn what signals your body is giving you, indicating that you’re having a stress response. Become aware; stop being on automatic pilot. Take time to listen to what your body is telling you.

Remember to Breathe!

When you feel that there are circumstances which could become stressful, remember to breathe. Slowly. Just 2 – 3 minutes of breathing slowly, will allow your brain to switch off the toxic chemical soup mix and turn on a mixture that’s much more supportive.