Brain Overload - Oh No!
Hi there, is anyone else out there with brain overload? You know what I mean where your mind is going 100 miles an hour, ruminating about the past, fretting about the future - living in what if moments and dreaded possibilities?
Don't you just hate it when you have been having a great couple of days, weeks, even months and then you wake up one morning, and your brain is on one. Your angry Amy Amygdala is in full fight and flight mode.
Seriously when Amy (I call my amygdala Amy as trying to remember how to say amygdala can be such a mouthfull), is in full on fight or flight mode, you're more likely to experience psychological threats, such as the pressures and stress of modern life, work, and relationships. These emotions, too, can trigger the amygdala's fight-or-flight response. Anger, aggression, fear, and stress are all common emotional triggers - it can be difficult to turn her off.
I was having episodes of this on and off a few weeks ago, I seriously was having an impossible time sorting through all the stuff coming into my poor head. You see my family and I are facing some unexpected and unwanted challenges in our personal and family lives - completely out of the blue - the type you never expected to happen and Amy decided it was time to air her grievances and go into full fight and flight mode.
So much so that I eventually, I had to put my foot down and say stop it!
There was too much information and stress and it had to stop!
You see, the brain can only take so much. Just like the rest of our bodies, it has a limit to the amount of stress and information it can deal with.
Ever had that experience where your own personal Amy has kicked off, had a temper tantrum, and the rest of your day goes wrong - you start making mistakes at work, emailed the wrong people, had a near miss in the car, left your purse at home, stubbed your toe. I could go on - but you know when Amy gets going the rest of the day seems to turn to sh--!
This, my friends, is called switching. The brain has switched off higher level functions to preserve energy and integrity and you, whether you like it or not, are being run by your reactive and emotional brain centres. Not the greatest decision makers. It’s kind of like leaving a 3 year old in charge – things are going to get messy in a hurry.
So which parts of our brains are working when we are in these modes. Well it's your Angry Amy (amygdala) also known as the reptilian brain - which controls the body's vital functions such as heart rate, breathing, body temperature and balance. The deeper function of the reptilian brain is also is a brain of pattern and familiarity – one based in addressing the needs of comfort and survival. It will make us do rather unreasonable things for the sake of those needs.
So, how do you switch this off? Well, this is where all that stuff about getting softer, quieter and being present that I often talk about, comes in.
First things first, you need to stop racing around, both in your mind and in your world. All of this rushing, stressing and fast-paced action is going to tax your brain big-time. It needs balance and some time to re-set.
So let's all now take a big, deep breath right into the belly and continue taking those until you’re back in your skin, feeling your body. Use the out breath to unwind tension and holding. Being right here is where its at.
Second, do whatever you do to get back to your centre and into your body. For me it’s just sitting in the paddock with my horses, taking my dog for a walk, meditation and best of all meditating with my horses. Just thinking about meditating with my horses takes me to that yummy calm place!
What’s it for you? Find those things and make sure that you do at least one of them a day.
Last thing – think about doing something different, out in nature, - it's called switching - as a Mindful, Meditation Practitioner I work with switching all the time in my clients (and myself!).
This one technique can change everything, from your perception, to your natural stress response to your energy levels (oh so much better). It’s good stuff and often just one session can do the trick (and yes, you can book yours right here if you feel so inclined).
Wishing you all a wonderful and balanced week. Until next time…
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