The mind and body are wonderful creations. We were designed to react to danger in such a way as to ensure survival, whether it be fleeing or killing the threat. Simple and essential. Adrenaline subsided and because life was simple, there was no “what if”. It was “this saber-toothed tiger leg is delicious”! This good stress allowed man to determine very quickly the best exit routes or how to catch his prey. No in-depth analysis was required, that is, there was no conscious awareness, only automatic.

However, we no longer live like this, what happens when a threat is anticipated? The presentation, the interview, the discussion, the meeting, the traffic. The mind sees this as your life is threatened and all the fight or flight is raging within you. With the adrenaline pumping, you may experience body tremors, heat changes, rapid heartbeat, rapid breathing, and find it difficult to think clearly.

The triggering event occurs, you feel panicky and uneasy. Then it ends and your self-talk becomes what happens to you, how stupid, etc. But unlike our previous ancestors, instead of the body being calm and relaxed again, the mind takes over – what if my boss thinks I’m an idiot, will I lose my job (or insert your conclusion) ? Fear is running inside your head and now you start to “see” things that support your fears – did you see the way he ignored me this morning or didn’t they copy me in the email? The wave of discomfort continues to develop and his sleep is interrupted. Your mind is so preoccupied with the “what if”, there is no now or no voice telling you to shut up because you have the “proof” you need to back up your claims.

The following begins to happen:

Sense of dread:

You feel bad about the idea of ​​going to work. Is this the day that I will be fired? Even the weekends become less pleasant. At 3pm on a Sunday, the churning begins in your stomach and you wonder what you can do to stop the frenzy inside, but it’s too late, the damage is done, if only you had talked more?

Tiredness:

Do you feel tired all the time and not only physically tired but also mentally groggy? It is not surprising. Your dream is disturbed. You never reach the deep renewal levels of sleep because you are still on high alert within your mind. Everything is an effort.

To eat or not to eat:

Change in eating habits from not eating to eating junk. Failure to eat sends the body into famine mode and therefore anything that is eaten will be stored as a fuel reserve because the mind simply does not do so when the food is received again.

Your blood sugar fluctuates and this, combined with your natural hormones, wreaks havoc on your mood.

Irritability:

It’s no fun being around you. You snap, you lose your temper with the slight provocation. Why does no one else feel your pain?

Without enjoying life:

The things that used to give you joy, you no longer do or you have lost interest. You have become introspective.

Fighting your feelings:

Ignoring or denying feelings creates tension in the body. The more you resist, the more it persists. The more you deny the message that comes from your mind, the more pain it will give you (you should not be able to hear the message, it is the philosophy of the mind).

What happens is that you are looking for a physical reason for the headaches, pain and aches rather than the emotional discomfort of not being able to disconnect. Or you go through the pain and feel even worse. It must have been the way I was sitting at my desk.

You need free time to see various doctors; there must be a reason for this tiredness / pain / discomfort.

What is happening, of course, is that you have forgotten to quit your job, you have forgotten to improve yourself, do you need to improve your skills or even improve your skills? Or maybe he just wasn’t feeling well and his entire downward spiral was due to this.

You have allowed your mind to get caught up in the frenzy of fear. Your view of life is distorted because you can only see things through pain, not reality.

The only thing you can control is your mental state. Start now. You have to learn to regain control. What is the only thing you can think about without causing you pain? when was the last time you laughed?

The steps to take initially are to relax your mind and body: hypnosis, mindfulness, or even a funny movie, something your mind can focus on on nothing or something (like progressive muscle relaxation). Anything that keeps you from feeling bad about yourself.

Second, enjoy a new haircut, buy a new piece of clothing. Something to cheer you up.

Third, you need to talk to someone about how to deal with handling stressful situations. Learn not to absorb negative energy and to let things invade you. This doesn’t have to hurt! It can be learning about body language and how your body position communicates with your mind.

Do this:

Put your body in exaggerated depression mode – hunched shoulders, tight face and scream “I’m so happy” – doesn’t make sense, does it?

Now stand up and speak, shoulders back, face relaxed, and whisper “I’m so depressed”; again, the body language and the words don’t match.

Put the words with the corresponding body language. How do you want to feel now? What should be different about you?