Making stress work for you

There are a lot of reasons to say people are more stressed daily, more o en now than at any time previously. Stress can cause diseases of the body like heart disease and many auto-immune conditions, as well as mental conditions such as anxiety, which up to 40 million Americans struggle with, according to the National Institute of Health (nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics).

ese conditions stem from an overload of stressors accumulating faster than the body and mind can process. Our ancestors on the savannah might have been battling saber-tooths or hostile tribes or navigating dangerous terrain but would typically have time to recover between events.

In modern life, it’s o en repeated stressors of a less life-threatening nature, such as o ce politics, relationships, or even making your morning bus. Note how many times your heart quickens with anxiety in everyday conversation or reading emails, watching the news, or scrolling social media posts. Some of these things you can choose to avoid, but if it’s in a relationship you value, whether at work or at home, you may feel obliged to stay in the situation.

Why stress exists

Stress has a lot to answer for. However, it can be helpful to remember that the stress response has a purpose. As an evolved survival strategy, it can spur us to action, li us out of indecision, prevent us from repeating negative events, and even make us healthier.

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Classified Advertising | Friday, noon 206-461-1300 or class@pacificpublishingcompany.com a life-threatening situation, there are several scenarios in which stress is a good thing. Hormetic stress, producing an e ect known as hormesis, could be classi ed as “just-enough” stress. It gets you moving, trying new things, learning, and exercising. It keeps you expanding and challenging yourself to a level that is bene cial versus anxietyproducing. Physically, examples include temperature stress, like saunas and cold exposure, diet stress like time-restricted eating, and exercise. Perhaps surprisingly, many of these, notably time-restricted eating, are linked to increased longevity. Hormesis is a great illustration of the adage, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” – applied in measured doses of course.

Mentally, entering new situations or learning a new skill can be both exciting and challenging. e key is to lean into the former over the latter. Experts say ow state, an optimal state of learning and creativity, is achieved when we are just uncomfortable enough to stay engaged and learn without giving up or stressing out. e ideal degree of di culty is 4% above your current skill level, says Steven Kotler author of “ e Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer.” Doing this regularly will expand your skill levels and make your life more interesting too.

Turning it around

When you nd yourself tipping into the stress response when trying a new situation, you can ip the switch from stress to relaxation if you catch it early enough. Here are several ideas –see which resonate with you.

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SERVING THE FAMILIES OF QUEEN ANN E SINCE 1991 1905 Queen Anne Ave N • 206.282.8275 www.QueenAnneChiro.com e nervous system has two modes of operation, o en called “rest-and-digest” or “ ght-or- ight” that balance each other like a seesaw. ink of the hypothalamus as the fulcrum of the seesaw. e scienti c terms for these are the parasympathetic (relaxation) and sympathetic (stress) responses. Today people are spending a signi cant amount of time in sympathetic mode, or ght-or- ight.

When the eyes and/or ears perceive a threat, the brain’s amygdala interprets the information based on prior experience. With enough stress, it alerts the hypothalamus, which acts as a command center, triggering faster heart rate, rising blood pressure, shallow breathing, and spiking a hormone called cortisol. (It can also cue relaxation with its distinct cascade of e ects and hormones.)

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Can you imagine if we had no stress response? A woman known in psychiatry annals as “S.M.” su ered a rare condition damaging her amygdala leaving her with no fear. In studies, she voluntarily grabbed venomous snakes, and once calmly walked away from a knife-wielding man. You can imagine if people could manage to avoid stress altogether, either by all-day meditation or chemical means, they’d be relaxed, but probably wouldn’t be building the Brooklyn Bridge or the Parthenon.

Good stress

In addition to potentially saving your life in

• Before you step on stage for the presentation or a local theater club, enter the job interview or party, try taking a page from athletes. While they may be a little nervous on the starting block or walking onto the eld, most are lled with anticipation. eir bodies are geared up to move but excitement is winning over fear. Try saying to yourself “Let’s go!” or “ is is going to be fun!” e Inc., a 501(c)3 nonpro t organization, has re-opened in the Lower Queen Anne/ Uptown neighborhood, with the support of the Seattle Restored program. e Inc. is a pioneering space which combines coworking with childcare, and prioritizes work-life balance during the early years of parenthood, when it can be the most di cult. With a focused workspace for caregivers and a safe, stimulating preschool environment for their children in the next room, e Inc. o ers an innovative solution that addresses challenges faced by modern parents.

• If you need a physical cue, try a “power pose,” shown in studies to increase feelings of power and assertiveness, and in Amy Cuddy’s initial study at Harvard, to show hormonal e ects as well. Power poses are expansive and open. Take the stance of Wonder Woman or a star sh before jumping in and see how you feel.

• Breathing is a powerful relaxation tool we take with us everywhere. ere are many techniques, but the general rule is that inhaling is exciting, exhaling is relaxing. Longer exhales than inhales cue the body to relax. Slower, longer, and breathing from the belly versus the chest are all calming. Andrew Weil likes the 4-7-8 breath: inhale for a count of 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8. In box-breathing, the exhale and inhale counts are the same, but holds between each decrease the amount of time inhaling. You inhale for 4 seconds, hold 4, exhale 4, and hold.

We can take control of our stress and relaxation, which can help us live longer, healthier and happier, while learning new things.

“Our reopening is an exciting next chapter for e Inc.,” said Sandra Helsley, current board member. “I credit e Inc. with providing the space to start my small business when my older child was a toddler. He loved going to e Inc. to learn and play, and I relished the opportunity for focused work time. We were both devastated when the pandemic forced e Inc. to close its doors, and I am ecstatic to be supporting other caregivers through its reopening.”

At e Inc., children attend morning summer camp in the brightly lit space, while caregivers work in the quiet, spacious room next door. e preschool curriculum focuses on exploration through play, promoting cognitive, social, and emotional development. In the a ernoons, the space transitions into a unique coworking and co-play space. Parents can complete light work tasks while supervising their children as they engage in open playtime nearby, allowing them to maximize productivity. Fall program registration begins soon. Amenities include air conditioning, high-speed Internet, large work tables, plenty of light, and lounge and kitchen areas for well-deserved breaks. e Inc.’s location is well positioned for easy commute and transit within Seattle, with nearby bus stops (D Line, 1, 8, and 32), easy street parking, and close proximity to nearby small businesses and grocery stores. e Inc. invites interested individuals, caregivers, parents, and members of the media to visit their newly reopened space at 506 2nd Ave W, Seattle WA. e team is excited to provide personalized tours and answer any questions about their unique co-working and playschool concept. For more information, visit https://www. theinccoworking.org or contact hello@womensincubator.org.