Musings | Completing The Stress Cycle
“Sometimes, the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.”
While it is impossible to make all our stressors disappear, there are things we can do to support how we deal with stress. Emily and Amelia Nagoski, authors of Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle, tell us that we find ways to communicate with our bodies to signal that we are no longer threatened. They call this Completing the Stress Cycle, which can help us to handle stress, combat emotional exhaustion and buffer against burnout.
To help us better understand the stress cycle - let’s review some key terms.
Stressors are the things that cause us stress (deadlines, viruses, our to-do list, finances, etc.).
Stress is our physiological response to the stressors - it is essentially the same regardless of the threat (i.e., fight, flight, freeze).
A complete stress response cycle looks like this: the beginning - we perceive the threat; the middle - our body does something to respond (physiologically); the end - our body understands that the danger has passed and our body is safe.
We often miss out on the end step - completing the stress cycle by communicating to our body that we are not under threat and that we are safe. The stressors will likely always be around, but if we teach ourselves and communicate to our bodies that we are not under threat, we will protect ourselves from burnout and exhaustion. When we remind ourselves that we are safe and not threatened, we turn off the physiological fight/flight response and allow our bodies to relax.
To read about all six evidence-based ways to conclude the stress cycle and learn more about it, please review this article and the accompanying Ted Talk (18 minutes). To learn how to bring stress to completion, check out the summarized ideas below.
BREATHE. Deep, slow breaths are a great way to calm yourself and decrease your feeling of stress. Try to exhale longer than you inhale– fill your belly like a balloon when you inhale and deflate your belly when you exhale. Check out more quick and straightforward breathing exercises here.
MOVE. Physical activity of any kind is a great way to buffer emotional fatigue and stress. Run, walk, dance, snowshoe, ski, swim, or bike, move your body to help you feel better, and reset your stress response.
LAUGH. When we laugh, we feel connected, and we build social bonds. Laughing also helps us with emotional regulation. Need help finding funny? Check out this collection of short videos to cheer you when you have a bad day at work or spend some time with Olive and Mabel (labrador retrievers, commentary provided by Andrew Cotter) to induce (we hope) some good out-loud laughter!
HUG. Yes, grab a hug! Research has shown that a 20-second hug with someone you care about and feel safe with can improve your mood, lower your blood pressure and heart rate, and help you feel safe and relaxed. Petting your dog, cat, or pet and snuggling with your furry friends can also help you decompress and complete the stress cycle.
Understanding the stress cycle and how to complete it was new information for us, but we found it quite helpful. We hope this post helps you conclude your stress response, relax your body, and decrease burnout.
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