Stress and Anxiety

[Duke Wellington]

I have been examining how stress and anxiety works and thought I would post my insights into turning them off for those interested. If you have your own methods please share.

Cold Showers: The stress of cold showers activates an area of the limbic system that takes the edge off stress and anxiety. It doesnt completely shut them down, but dampens them down quite a lot. Repeated cold showers every morning hardens a person up to stress and anxiety so they have a higher pain threshold.

Sensory Overload: During periods of stress and anxiety our minds narrow to a focus. The focus being whatever is making us stressed and anxious. We can reverse that by making ourselves aware of everything our eyes can see, our ears can hear, our noses can smell, our tongues can taste, and our skin can feel, all at the same time. If that is hard start with the vision and smell at the same time. Our brains cannot do anxiety and stress while subjected to sensory overload. It struggles to do both at once.

Smelling Lemons: The smell of lemons has been shown to directly affect the activity of the limbic system to turn off stress and anxiety.

 

 

[+Desertrat56]

7 minutes ago, RabidMongoose said:

I have been examining how stress and anxiety works and thought I would post my insights into turning them off for those interested. If you have your own methods please share.

Cold Showers: The stress of cold showers activates an area of the limbic system that takes the edge off stress and anxiety. It doesnt completely shut them down, but dampens them down quite a lot. Repeated cold showers every morning hardens a person up to stress and anxiety so they have a higher pain threshold.

Sensory Overload: During periods of stress and anxiety our minds narrow to a focus. The focus being whatever is making us stressed and anxious. We can reverse that by making ourselves aware of everything our eyes can see, our ears can hear, our noses can smell, our tongues can taste, and our skin can feel, all at the same time. If that is hard start with the vision and smell at the same time. Our brains cannot do anxiety and stress while subjected to sensory overload. It struggles to do both at once.

Smelling Lemons: The smell of lemons has been shown to directly affect the activity of the limbic system to turn off stress and anxiety.

 

 

Sensory overload is a cause of stress, a common, well know cause.

Smelling lemons, some other citrus or mint is a good way and easy because you can keep something in your pocket and smell it when ever you start to get stressed. 

As for the cold showers, I know nothing except that a cold shower in winter stresses me more than anything.  In the summer it might work, but is inconvenient when you are fine until you run in to someone who stresses you in public, where it the cold shower then?  I don't think your idea of building up tolerance is workable.

[Duke Wellington]

Just now, Desertrat56 said:

Sensory overload is a cause of stress, a common, well know cause.

Smelling lemons, some other citrus or mint is a good way and easy because you can keep something in your pocket and smell it when ever you start to get stressed. 

As for the cold showers, I know nothing except that a cold shower in winter stresses me more than anything.  In the summer it might work, but is inconvenient when you are fine until you run in to someone who stresses you in public, where it the cold shower then?  I don't think your idea of building up tolerance is workable.

You dont get what I mean by sensory overload.

I am not talking about the feeling people get of being overwhelmed. I am telling people to max out the information from their senses to the brain because the brain cannot process all that information while also doing stress and anxiety. The stress and anxiety get turned off.

[+Desertrat56]

Just now, RabidMongoose said:

You dont get what I mean by sensory overload.

I am not talking about the feeling people get of being overwhelmed. I am telling people to max out the information from their senses to the brain because the brain cannot process all that information while also doing stress and anxiety. The stress and anxiety get turned off.

No, I get what you are saying, I know what sensory overload is.  You don't think like a normal person so you aren't going to really be helpful to someone who actually suffers from anxiety.

[Duke Wellington]

17 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

No, I get what you are saying, I know what sensory overload is.  You don't think like a normal person so you aren't going to really be helpful to someone who actually suffers from anxiety.

You are now on ignore.

Edited October 4, 2019 by RabidMongoose

[rashore]

33 minutes ago, RabidMongoose said:

I have been examining how stress and anxiety works and thought I would post my insights into turning them off for those interested. If you have your own methods please share.

Cold Showers: The stress of cold showers activates an area of the limbic system that takes the edge off stress and anxiety. It doesnt completely shut them down, but dampens them down quite a lot. Repeated cold showers every morning hardens a person up to stress and anxiety so they have a higher pain threshold.

Sensory Overload: During periods of stress and anxiety our minds narrow to a focus. The focus being whatever is making us stressed and anxious. We can reverse that by making ourselves aware of everything our eyes can see, our ears can hear, our noses can smell, our tongues can taste, and our skin can feel, all at the same time. If that is hard start with the vision and smell at the same time. Our brains cannot do anxiety and stress while subjected to sensory overload. It struggles to do both at once.

Smelling Lemons: The smell of lemons has been shown to directly affect the activity of the limbic system to turn off stress and anxiety.

 

 

Heh, the thought of taking a cold shower stresses me out. But I find a cool footbath to be relaxing and soothing.

I kind of think I understand the sensory overload. Like blasting music and getting lost in it, or getting out to nature and letting it wash over you to the point where you just let go of the stress. Or really breathing and just stopping to only really breathe can load ya up and bring down stress.

I had no idea that smelling lemons had something to do with the limbic system. But smelling them is nice for me. Lavender and rosemary are good ones for me too. And comfort scents- for me it's amber, the smell of my husband, good deep growing loam..

I've utilized mantras or phrases for stress and anxiety. The fear-killer one from Dune was a good one. Good on it's own, and suits nicely to sub out for other words more suiting the situation. Others come and go depending on what's going on in my life.

Some songs and music are useful too. Or digging back down into an old movie or book I refuse to let my childhood indulgences let go of.

Pets... animal companions, friends. And even feeding the wildlife to watch them. Gardening, growing things.. reaping things and processing them into goodies for us when things are out of season.

Learning how to get over a phobia. Helps to remember you got over your willies over spiders or unblinking barf reflex to blood if you are in another stressful/anxious situation. And convince yourself whatever it is, wasn't so awful as that, right?

Learn how to use small moments to do fidgeting, or pressure points, or being still, stretching, or whatever you need to do.

[Duke Wellington]

5 minutes ago, rashore said:

Heh, the thought of taking a cold shower stresses me out. But I find a cool footbath to be relaxing and soothing.

I kind of think I understand the sensory overload. Like blasting music and getting lost in it, or getting out to nature and letting it wash over you to the point where you just let go of the stress. Or really breathing and just stopping to only really breathe can load ya up and bring down stress.

I had no idea that smelling lemons had something to do with the limbic system. But smelling them is nice for me. Lavender and rosemary are good ones for me too. And comfort scents- for me it's amber, the smell of my husband, good deep growing loam..

I've utilized mantras or phrases for stress and anxiety. The fear-killer one from Dune was a good one. Good on it's own, and suits nicely to sub out for other words more suiting the situation. Others come and go depending on what's going on in my life.

Some songs and music are useful too. Or digging back down into an old movie or book I refuse to let my childhood indulgences let go of.

Pets... animal companions, friends. And even feeding the wildlife to watch them. Gardening, growing things.. reaping things and processing them into goodies for us when things are out of season.

Learning how to get over a phobia. Helps to remember you got over your willies over spiders or unblinking barf reflex to blood if you are in another stressful/anxious situation. And convince yourself whatever it is, wasn't so awful as that, right?

Learn how to use small moments to do fidgeting, or pressure points, or being still, stretching, or whatever you need to do.

The cold showers are hard to do at first, after about 2 weeks of doing it everyday it gets easier. And by that time it will also be pleasurable. They will make you feel high and alive. They instantly dampen down stress because the area of the limbic system that deals with cold stress takes priority over stress and anxiety. It doesnt completely shut them off, but makes them way easier to manage.

The stringent smell of the lemon completely stops stress and anxiety, and wakes people up, but with the stress and anxiety as soon as the person stops smelling the lemon they return. So it means smelling it for a good 10 minutes while relaxing and breathing and stopping attaching other thoughts to the feeling of being stressed.

I never tried lavender and rosemary although I have noticed lavender bubble bath is relaxing. Thanks for pointing this out, I will see what they are like.

With the sensory overload there is a maximum number of things the brain can do at once. Being aware of a lot of sensory information at once leaves the brain without any processing power for stress and anxiety. By expanding out your awareness from narrowed focus to all your seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching sensory information it also turns off insomnia when the insomnia is caused by focused thinking.

I haven't had a pet in years so I dont know about that. With the fidget toys they do take the persons mind of stress and anxiety. I have one of them to stop be swearing lol.

[LightAngel]

16 hours ago, RabidMongoose said:

If you have your own methods please share.

 

 

 

 

When you have your weekend, then turn your phone off - in fact......... turn everything off!

And just find peace within yourself my friend.

[Duke Wellington]

I found another way to override stress, anxiety, and rather surprisingly tiredness.

Intentional felling embarrassed with a blush response. Focus on that, it closes down the stress and anxiety. And when the embarrassment and flush wear off you have none of them left behind.

Edited October 14, 2019 by RabidMongoose

[spartan max2]

Your "sensory overload " is actually sort of similar to what we call "grounding techniques". It's a technique in mindfulness practice.

The idea is to focus on what you can hear, see, feel, smell, etc. All to pull you back to the present moment to expierence the now instead of being stuck in your anxiety thoughts.

Edited October 14, 2019 by spartan max2

['Walt' E. Kurtz]

Exercise and plenty of it. Counseling.

 

[Duke Wellington]

7 minutes ago, iridescence said:

Not sure if this is the best solution since I have anxiety from noises so focusing on hearing will only make my anxiety worse.

I found that the best solution for me is to eat healthy, sleep well and avoid toxic people/environment (if possible).

Also, music is really helpful but you have to choose the songs wisely. Shutting down your negative thoughts (maybe meditation) could help as well.

Its about expanding our your awareness of all your senses at the same time.

[+joc]

24 minutes ago, iridescence said:

Not sure if this is the best solution since I have anxiety from noises so focusing on hearing will only make my anxiety worse.

I found that the best solution for me is to eat healthy, sleep well and avoid toxic people/environment (if possible).

Also, music is really helpful but you have to choose the songs wisely. Shutting down your negative thoughts (maybe meditation) could help as well.

I use to drive by a Pig Food Production Facility every day...omg...the smell was horrendous...you could not keep from smelling it no matter what you do.  It was quite nauseous in fact.  But I had to drive by it.  When I realized I hated the smell...and when I heard myself saying out loud, omg I hate that$^&ing smell, I just reversed it.  I started saying...oh wow, I love that smell!  And rolling my windows all the way down, I would inhale as much as I could repeating how I loved the smell.  I actually started to like the smell very much.  

Our senses become groomed to what pleases them.  Our Subconscious can re-groom them but it takes a conscious effort.

[+joc]

1 hour ago, iridescence said:

So next time when I hear those annoying noises, I should tell myself how much I love them. That sounds like a really interesting strategy.

And the next time an annoying jerk  cuts you off in traffic...whatever your brothers or sisters name is...say, Bobby! Good grief stop acting so crazy...geeez... 

 

[+joc]

I think the easiest, most thorough thing that one can do to reduce stress is to just live in the moment.  Accept the moment for whatever it brings and go on.

Leave the past in the past.  Stop living the future in the present.  Anticipation causes stress.  Sometimes lights are red and we need to stop...sometimes lights are green and we get to go...but getting stressed out over every single light?  Gotta make the green...come on...turn, turn, turn...oh crap!  Enjoy the moment of the red light as a time to reflect on what is actually going on around you.  

In the moment...there is no stress.  In the moment...there is only ...the moment...and when we  accept the moment as it is, for what it is...there is no stress.

[+Desertrat56]

6 minutes ago, joc said:

I think the easiest, most thorough thing that one can do to reduce stress is to just live in the moment.  Accept the moment for whatever it brings and go on.

Leave the past in the past.  Stop living the future in the present.  Anticipation causes stress.  Sometimes lights are red and we need to stop...sometimes lights are green and we get to go...but getting stressed out over every single light?  Gotta make the green...come on...turn, turn, turn...oh crap!  Enjoy the moment of the red light as a time to reflect on what is actually going on around you.  

In the moment...there is no stress.  In the moment...there is only ...the moment...and when we  accept the moment as it is, for what it is...there is no stress.

Also, pay attention to your expectations and understand that sometimes they are unreasonable.  Once you know that, a lot of stress goes away.

[+joc]

6 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

Also, pay attention to your expectations and understand that sometimes they are unreasonable.  Once you know that, a lot of stress goes away.

I think @XenoFish and I had this conversation not long ago.  Stress is actually the bi-product of unfulfilled expectation.  Even if our expectations are perfectly reasonable...life changes on a dime...and many times what we thought was going to happen doesn't.  Which goes back to ...accepting the moment for what it is.

Edited December 28, 2019 by joc

[XenoFish]

3 minutes ago, joc said:

I think @XenoFish and I had this conversation not long ago.  Stress is actually the bi-product of unfulfilled expectation.  Even if our expectations are perfectly reasonable...life changes on a dime...and many times what we thought was going to happen doesn't.  Which goes back to ...accepting the moment for what it is.

I think it might have been in the Life is worth living thread. Though I could be wrong.

[+joc]

2 minutes ago, XenoFish said:

I think it might have been in the Life is worth living thread. Though I could be wrong.

That sounds right...

[GlitterRose]

For some reason, the smell of ground coffee also works for that.

[Duke Wellington]

1 hour ago, GlitterRose said:

For some reason, the smell of ground coffee also works for that.

Thats a good one, I have noticed that myself.

With the smell of lemon juice (fresh or aromatherapy) thats the most effective one I have found. It totally 100% turns of stress and anxiety so long as the smell is kept under the nose. A good 10 minutes of it is enough to break a thinking pattern.

[spartan max2]

On 12/28/2019 at 8:55 AM, iridescence said:

Got it. Not sure if this will work for me since I hate noises to my bones but I will definitely try it.

You could try some "grounding techniques". (From the mindfulness school of thought)

https://www.healthline.com/health/grounding-techniques

We give them as tools for clients with anxiety sometimes.

Generally the idea is to pull you back into focusing on the present moment, instead of being stuck ruminating in your head. Sort of like breaking the loop.

The one I like is the "5".

It goes, first identify 5 things you see at this exact moment, and really focus on seeing them.

Then 4 things you feel (touch) in the present moment, focus on the body sensations, e.g your butt in the chair, etc.

3 things you hear in the present moment.

2 things you smell.

1 the taste in your mouth.

(You can switch up the order of the senses but you get the gist).

Edited December 29, 2019 by spartan max2

[spartan max2]

21 hours ago, GlitterRose said:

For some reason, the smell of ground coffee also works for that.

You unknowingly used a grounding technique .

The smells pulls you back to the present moment breaking the rumination.

[Jujo-jo]

On 10/4/2019 at 2:55 PM, RabidMongoose said:

I have been examining how stress and anxiety works and thought I would post my insights into turning them off for those interested. If you have your own methods please share.

Cold Showers: The stress of cold showers activates an area of the limbic system that takes the edge off stress and anxiety. It doesnt completely shut them down, but dampens them down quite a lot. Repeated cold showers every morning hardens a person up to stress and anxiety so they have a higher pain threshold.

Sensory Overload: During periods of stress and anxiety our minds narrow to a focus. The focus being whatever is making us stressed and anxious. We can reverse that by making ourselves aware of everything our eyes can see, our ears can hear, our noses can smell, our tongues can taste, and our skin can feel, all at the same time. If that is hard start with the vision and smell at the same time. Our brains cannot do anxiety and stress while subjected to sensory overload. It struggles to do both at once.

Smelling Lemons: The smell of lemons has been shown to directly affect the activity of the limbic system to turn off stress and anxiety.

 

 

Sensory overload sounds like multi tasking, lol Kayak, pray, listen music, use aromatherapy, go for walks or take a ride, watch the current in the river listen to the waves, epson salt or bubble baths, cuddle with kitties, sleep, eat comfort foods, read, meditate, paint, watch birds, get a massage, take anxiety medication if need be. But most importantly seek a solution to resolve the stress or anxiety.

I have caused myself to have stress, by watching too much news or by procrastinating, or by hanging out with the wrong people. I have learned the hard way how to avoid these situations.

I think cold showers only makes a person's body naturally tense up, if I'm tensed then my body is stressed and I dont like to be cold.

[ocpaul20]

I like the idea of lists.

You place on a list your tasks, everything you have been worrying about.

You then review the list and cross off everything you cannot directly control - there is no point worrying about that. Leave that up to the Universe to sort out.

You place in order of importance everything you can directly control.

Take the top one and break it down into manageble pieces and start on the first piece immediately or if it is too much then break it down further and start on the first piece of that.

You feel a little better once you have started to make headway on your most pressing task.