By Mary Jaksch
Are you feeling stressed? Maybe there’s a deadline bearing down on you like a freight train, or an unpaid bill that keeps reappearing in your mailbox. It’s easy to feel strung-out and stressed at those times.
Stress equals preoccupied mind plus tense body.
A tense body is the result of a preoccupied mind. Check in with yourself for a moment. What are your predominant thoughts? If you’re stressed, you’ll most likely experience one or more of the following thought-patterns:
- You are anxious about the near future.
- You experience a lot of negative self-talk, such as ‘I can’t do this’ or ‘It’s just too much’ etc.
- You try to keep all your commitments in your head and feel overwhelmed.
When we are stressed, it sometimes feels like we are wound up tight, sometimes right to breaking point. It’s important to learn how to unwind and relax body and mind – even if only for short periods.
The key factor of stress is preoccupation.
When we are preoccupied, we don’t experience the present moment because our mind is somewhere else. When we return to the present moment, a small miracle happens – stress drops away. This is a simple and effective way to calm you mind. The more you practice returning to the present moment, the more you learn how to put your stressed mind at ease.
The five senses are doorways into the Now
Take a moment right now to check in with your senses.
- What do you hear right now?
- What do you see right now?
- What do you smell right now?
- What body sensations do you feel right now?
Just checking in with your senses made you feel calmer, right? Remember to stop and check in with your senses whenever you feel stressed. You will find that it’s a relief to return home to the present moment.
Moments make up our life: inspiring moments, joyful moments, grieving moments, playful moments – moments of all different shades and colors. When we are preoccupied, we miss what this moment right now has to offer. We miss your life itself.
Watch this inspiring video that shows life’s wonderful tapestry of moments:
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I’m sitting here eating my tangerines and brushing off the dust from my eyes thinking how this post is a perfect way to start my day
.-= Henri´s last blog ..How to Overcome Procrastination =-.
Wow thanks for the great tip on calming your mind, I’ll definitely try it out the *next* time I’m feeling even slightly overwhelmed by a particular situation. It sounds incredibly easy also (checking in with your senses), and I also like how you added that it helps bring you into the present moment… just thinking about it makes me feel a little more “present”.
The parts of your article that speaks about stress reminds me of an article I wrote on my blog about overcoming worry, sounds like we agree on things on this subject.
I particularly agree with this “stress-causing” factor that you mentioned:
“You try to keep all your commitments in your head and feel overwhelmed.”
A lot of times stress is definitely caused by an overwhelming amount of things to “keep up with” and this can surprisingly be battled by making a simple to-do list, or going through the process of “transferring your worries” onto a sheet of paper and leaving it in a drawer, or someplace you can “plan” on coming back to it later.
Thanks again for the great article!
.-= Jonathan Beebe´s last blog ..Turn Off the T.V. =-.
Hello,
Perhaps take it one step further and change the current moment before concentrating on your sense.
Go for a 10 min walk in the park and feel the winter cold, smell, hear the city / country buzz…
If you are strung out in front of a computer or in a cubicle, concentrating on senses right there and then might make it worse
.-= Charles´s last blog ..zCoach – Free Diet and Fitness Tracker =-.
This post is wonderful, I think the very point of being mindful of what you are doing, the here and now, is the gate to stress free life.
Deep breathing is a constant exercise I use to bring myself back to the moment. Particularly during my work hours. Maybe slowing down a bit is also helpful to bring ourselves back to the moment too.
Thanks for this wonderful post Mary. =)
.-= Alejandro Reyes´s last blog ..Friday fun… =-.
Mary, this is beautiful. I think reconnecting with the senses is probably the best way to “get out of our heads” and back to the moment. I loved the video, too.
I just wrote recently about reconnecting with your body when you’re busy, in order to get clear and centered again. This was a great reminder of all that, too.
Cheers,
Miche
.-= Miche | Serenity Hacker´s last blog ..Regaining Inner Peace When You’re Busy: Walking Gratitude Meditation =-.
So true. For me that’s why breathing is so important. The best way I know to reinhabit my body.
.-= LPC´s last blog ..Three Archetypal Ski Sweaters. Even If You Don’t Ski. =-.
Alright! Tnx 4 the post! I have been looking for a result to-do in order for me to achieve relaxation. The post gave me inspiration. Tnx again.