Knowing how to bring a sense of deep calm into your life isn’t just something that’s nice to have; it’s also an essential life skill. If you can be calm, you can lower cortisol levels and enable your creativity to thrive.
But, of course, you need the right philosophy and approach. How does that look? Here are some ideas.
Start by focusing on your nervous system
In today’s fast-paced world, a lack of calm is often the result of a dysregulated nervous system. It’s hard to think spiritually when your biology is working against you.
The best way to deal with this is to find ways to calm down and live more in the parasympathetic state. One way to do this is to avoid hurried movements. If you are rushing everywhere, you’ll train your body to think that it’s in a hurry and that it needs to panic. You’ll also want to do things like sleep regularly and stay warm if you’re cold, and constantly going to bed at different times can also be disruptive.
Even things like Natural Strains CBD can help. Chemically reprogramming your nervous system can be a good place to start.
Focus more on what exists in the next 10 minutes
Another pro tip for bringing a sense of deep calm into your life is to focus more on what’s going to happen in the next 10 minutes, not the next 10 days, 10 weeks, or 10 years. Anxiety is what happens when you think about the future and you dream up scenarios which are unlikely to happen. Of course, focusing on the present is something which is popular right now, but it’s also something monks figured out many centuries ago. Neuroscience is only just catching up to the fact that when people focus on the present, it makes them feel calmer and helps them to enjoy the texture of life more.
Don’t let cognitive noise get in your way
You should also proactively find ways to avoid cognitive noise from disrupting your peace. Cognitive noise is anything which is currently in an open loop that you haven’t fully closed. For example, it might be a difficult conversation that you haven’t had with someone or an unfinished task. It could also just be constant alerts on your phone. When you reduce these open loops, you’ll find that you’re better able to make decisions and that ultimately your mind calms down. It’s not trying to constantly process things that it hasn’t done yet. You’ve completed them, so there’s real closure.
Make your body less tight
Finally, for some people, a tight body can get in the way of a deep sense of personal calm. Therefore, you might want to observe yourself and look at some of the places where you’re holding yourself tightly. For example, are your shoulders up or are you breathing through the chest? Is your jaw tight or do you have TMJ? These are often signs of tension and that there’s danger nearby. They signal to the brain that it needs to be in a high state of alert all the time.
If you’re in this position, scan your body and see if you can soften it. Many people like using Daoist meditations for this purpose.
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