I’m sure this will resonate with some of you. Woke up this morning with post-snowstorm blues – aka getting back to our regularly scheduled program after a beautiful snow day of soup, kids, games, and late night TV. Throw in some impaired sleep and a discussion with my partner regarding finances and I was brewing for a helter-skelter, paralyzed-by-anxiety kind of morning – BEFORE heading off to my paying job. Mornings can be like this for me, when the possibility of the day gets overwhelming. Too MANY plans to “seize the day,” too many choices and too much thinking about which task would be best to tackle, be it career, family, finances, laundry, exercise…
I try to recognize when this is happening. And I’ve developed a few tricks to “re-set” my nervous system. For me (today), these included:
- drink a glass of water
- do a lymphatic reset
- go for a 10 minute walk outside
The water thing is something that happily has gotten a lot easier since a) starting with a glass of water at the bedside first thing in the AM and b) getting an electric tea kettle! I do love tea, warm water with lemon, hot water thrown into the last half of my morning coffee (I know, don’t come after me!) – the electric kettle makes it one step easier to hydrating on-demand.
My “Big Six” lymph reset I learned from Dr. Perry Nickelston at Stop Chasing Pain and I’ve had enough examples of immediate results for myself that whenever I am feeling “off” with pain, fatigue, mental fog, etc, I massage, tap, and vibrate my major lymph choke points. Even if I don’t feel some kind of relief in the moment, I know I am doing something beneficial for my body. This particular sequence only takes a couple minutes to complete, and more often than not, I do feel better. (I really do love lymph work and I am excited to share more about lymphatics in my future posts and with my private clients – stay tuned!)
Finally, I’ve discovered through some trial and error that 10 minutes of continuous, outside walking is about the bare minimum for me to experience some kind of mental shift towards calm, gentle focus, optimism, and gratitude. Anything more than 10 minutes is a bonus – I will notice an even more significant and lasting mindset shift – but if I am looking for a quick re-set and/or have it in my head that I can’t afford to devote the time to a longer walk, 9 times out of 10 I can talk myself into it. Because I KNOW from previous experience it will make me feel better, make my home and work time afterwards more enjoyable, productive, mindful, joyful. 6 Ways to Improve Your Focus from npr.org’s Life Kit series includes letting your brain “wander” for 20 minutes while both imagining a pleasurable memory or “happy place” and while completing a light activity such as walking, knitting, or gardening can actually help your brain re-set for improved focus after that 20 minute break.
I may not always make it to the recommended 20 minutes, but having my own 10 minute “bare minimum” rule is great because it helps ingrain a healthy habit when my anxiety is telling me I can’t commit to any longer, I can feel my own brain and nervous system change after 10 minutes, and oftentimes if I just convince myself out the door…I’ll end up walking and wandering for more than 10 minutes anyway.
What are your own “resets” if and when your thoughts start racing? Do any of these strategies sound helpful to you? Please let me know in the comments 🙂