Your Stress Type is Activation!

Stress Types

Stress reactions exist on a spectrum with the Activation or fight/flight on one end and the Shut Down or freeze/faint on the other.

Activation is when our nervous system perceives a threat (in our environment or in our mind) that activates our body to respond.

Back in the day, those “threats” were tigers and people from other groups, but a ‘threat’ in this day and age can be anything from your partner not doing the dishes again, or getting a negative comment on your social media feed.

Lions, Tigers & Bears,

Oh My!

Nervous System Restoration

Under most circumstances, once the threat has passed, the body balances itself out again. This brings about a return to the calm and safe state allowing for social engagement, connection, and communication with others again.

However, when women experience chronic overwhelm our bodies can stay stuck in one end of the stress reaction spectrum or a mix of both even after the threat has passed for several days, weeks or months. This happens as instinct responses are naturally triggered by cues in the environmental or internal reminders of what happened.

Coping with Activation:

When we experience overwhelm as active “fight or flight” response, our bodies need to reset and rest. Thankfully, many coping strategies are available to help shift the nervous system from overwhelm to calm. One strategy is the cold water splash.

Cold Water Splash

Why it works: Your face contains 100s of nerves sending instant signals to your brain. ‘Shocking’ these nerves with cold water resets your nervous system quickly to a state of calm.

It's like that feeling you get when you jump into a body of water in the summer time. That feeling of "woosh" is your nervous system resetting.

How to do it: Splash or submerge your face in cold water for a few seconds. Feel the shocking cold sensation and allow it to reset your body. (Feel the Woosh!)

Don't want to mess up your makeup? Try using an ice-pack on your neck, or gulp an ice-cold glass of water quickly.

When to do it: Anytime you start to feel overwhelmed, stressed, or those pesky body sensations start bothering you.

Hi, I'm Marlinda

I'm so glad you joined me today on the first step to reclaiming your mental clarity and calm. I am a psychologist and nothing makes me happier than to know that you are one step closer to having less stress and more joy in your life.

I've been working in the mental health field for over 10 years and this overwhelm type and stress-response information has been crucial in helping my clients, women just like you towards dramatic changes in their lives.

I hope knowing this information and coping strategy can help propel your life in a direction that you have always wanted to go.

Now You're in the Know!

Look in your email over the next week for a few more strategies and tips from me to help on your journey from beyond overwhelm to calm and connection.