What is stress anyway?
"I'm not stressed", says the person who can't sleep, can't lose weight, and craves sweet, fatty, and/or salty foods.
Stress is any internal or external pressure that prevents us from looking, feeling, and performing at our best.
Stress accumulates in small, mundane ways until our bodies can no longer handle the pressure.
An over-stressed system can present as:
Weight gain
Skin conditions
Gut conditions
Anxiety
Depression
Poor concentration
Mood problems
Inability to fall asleep or stay asleep
Sugar cravings
Heart disease
Niggling injuries
etc.....
But why so much stress?
Every day we expect ourselves to exercise, eat well, get enough sleep, have the perfect body, have perfect relationships, hold down a high-paying job, or struggle like hell to make ends meet in a job that we hate. Add this to looking after our children, our parents, and our pets, then paying off a mortgage with ever-increasing interest rates or renting in an impossible market, making sure we have enough funds for retirement, buying that big car, and then buying a second property to invest in. Along with all of this, there are our dysfunctional relationships, intergenerational traumas, lack of emotional support, and too little time to be with the people that we love, doing the things that light us up. Honestly, a better question to ask would be "How do we actually survive at all"?
A photo of me blissing out at the end of a breathwork session
Stress management???....
Stress management is a bit of a joke wouldn't you say? How on earth can we 'manage' all of this? It sounds like a full-time job. So what is the answer? The biggest problem we face as a result of the stress we are under is not the stress itself, but our lack of capacity or time to recover from that stress.
A photo of me in a VERY icy ice bath in Bali
We can't get rid of stress but we can make ourselves more stress resistant.
Interestingly, placing ourselves into stressful situations that we CAN recover from is actually one of the best ways to 'manage' stress. Rather than trying to juggle the load, we must make the load bearer capable of carrying the load more effectively. This is where breathwork and cold exposure come into the picture. Both of these tools can be used to place the body into a managed stressful state. Breathwork can create internal stress and reduce internal stress depending on how it is performed. Cold exposure can be used to create stress and then breathwork can be used alongside to support the body through that stress and assist with recovery. Regular cold exposure (performed in a safe way) and effective recovery helps to build nervous system resilience. We haven't eliminated the stress, we have made ourselves better able to handle stress.
Breathwork is also an effective tool for releasing built-up tension. Have you ever witnessed an intense emotional release after a breathwork session? People often cry or laugh out loud as they let go of emotions they have been holding down for weeks or even years. How often do we get the chance to spend time with people who openly want to let go of that which no longer serves them?
So there we have it. Rather than constantly trying to 'manage' stress, we can make ourselves a little more 'stress-resistant' and help our bodies cope with an ever-changing world.
Have you tried breathwork or cold exposure?
I'd love to hear from you. What is your experience with breathwork or cold exposure? Would you like to try them for the first time?
You can book a breathwork appointment with me at my Hamilton treatment room if you would like to learn more. BOOK HERE
I am also running a small (6-participant) women's breath and cold exposure session on the 12th of November and I have one spot left. You can learn more about it HERE.
To your very best health
Mel x
