Here, in my part of the world, in the San Francisco Bay Area, shelter-in-place orders started this week in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. This means that we can’t go out of the house except for essential activities like grocery shopping or hospital visits.
I have been thinking: “What’s the line between being sufficiently prepared and panicking?”
I have had my fair share of feeling overwhelmed. Should we stock up in a big way like other people seem to be doing? Isn’t a lot of this just panic hoarding (Videos of people fighting over toilet paper on the local news seem to attest to this. I know! First world problems, right?)
Unpredictability does bring up fear. So, if you are in a similar situation, I just want to say that it’s okay to feel stressed or overwhelmed. It’s okay to think and chew the situation over a bit. It’s okay to go over your options.
And once you have done that, it’s also okay to take whatever action makes you feel prepared and a little more in control.
So, this week, my husband and I stocked up on some essential groceries. We are taking precautions and doing things like washing our hands for 20 seconds. And so on.
But having done all this and making these decisions to the best of our judgment, there’s still our minds to get a grip on.
Like other highly sensitive people, I can ruminate quite a bit. I can sometimes make up a lot of negative scenarios. But one of the things I have figured out in the past year or so is helping me right now. I thought I would share it in case it might help you too.
It’s realizing that when I am overwhelmed, it’s not just my mind that is freaking out. It’s also my body that is getting overstimulated and overburdened.
And one very effective way to calm down my mind is to focus on ways to calm down my body.
If you are highly sensitive, you have the trait of Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS). It’s a biological trait, not some made-up-thing you can wish away (as a lot of sensitive people are told to do. Just “toughen up,” “Get over it.” But there’s a reason you can’t do that.)
Your brain and nervous system are processing things deeply. You are looking at all possibilities and deeply aware of what could happen.
Those negative scenarios are not simply happening in your mind. They are affecting you physically by overloading your nervous system.
So, if you can calm down your body, you can stop feeling so overwhelmed and overstimulated.
One great way to do this is by doing breathing exercises. Try this amazing one called the 4-7-8 breath by Dr. Andew Weil. Just try it for 2-3 minutes when you are overwhelmed and see how it helps you.
When we are overstimulated, our hearts pound. We feel like we are being pulled upwards from our very roots. We might feel like running away but can’t and then feel frozen in place.
The rhythms of our breathing and heart rate are connected. A specific breathing exercise that relaxes the nervous system can slow down that pounding, anxious heart. It can help us calm down noticeably and physically.
The body becomes a way to relax and calm our minds.
I was never one for breathing exercises in the past. But realizing that sensitivity “as a biological trait” means that our bodies, not just our minds, are getting overstimulated has helped me see how much conscious breathing can help.
So, if you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed, try this exercise. Experiment and see for yourself. It can feel liberating to have a tool to calm ourselves down right in that moment of fight, flight or freeze.
Again, this is not just about your mind. It’s also about your body.
So, pay attention to it.
And please take good care if you are in a community that is slowing down right now. I know it’s stressful. I am sending you lots of good wishes and good energy.
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