Kick The Stuffings Out Of Stress

Consider that the basic blueprint of your physical body has changed little over hundreds of generations. You still have more or less the same lungs, the same heart, the same feet and the same spine as did your early ancestors. Improved nutrition has made man a bit taller and somewhat sturdier but Nature changes her designs slowly and cautiously. Man has lived as hunter, shepherd, and farmer for most of human existence. The blueprint of the human body was based upon that lifestyle.

Although living conditions through the centuries have been harsh (even cruel by today's standards) the challenges to the human body and mind remained fairly constant for a very long time. The human design was shaped by living a localized, familiar, tribal existence; by following the dictates of the sun, the seas, the soil, and the seasons; by having days or even months of solitude; by moving only as fast as feet could walk and ox could pull.

Today, technology moves us forward (lock, stock, and body) at the speed of light. Suddenly, that same body/mind archetype is being pummeled and battered by a surge of unfamiliar data, sounds, images, and toxins. We fly incredible distances in a few hours, leaving in winter and arriving in summer, leaving today and arriving yesterday. Our familiar tribe, our trusted support group, is scattered over thousands of miles. We have become as aliens on our own planet with decreasing awareness of the delicate balance of the environment that sustains us.

The electronic buzz has become a roar. We live in an exhilarating time with countless possibilities that few could have imagined a mere 25 years ago. MAN MUST FIND A QUICK AND DEPENDABLE WAY TO CENTER AND STABILIZE HIMSELF EACH AND EVERY DAY IN ORDER TO MANAGE (AND EVEN PROFIT FROM) THE TECHNICAL TSUNAMI THAT SURROUNDS HIM. Your personal survival depends on your ability to embrace and yet manage the unprecedented change without being destroyed by it. The survival of our species depends on that ability.

The bad news is that changing and retooling the body-mind design takes tens of thousands of years. The good news is that man has an amazing ability to deal with short-term temporary challenges so long as he has the ability to turn it all off for a brief time and return to his basic template. You could think of this as re-booting your computer or re-setting your compass.

Actually centering yourself is quick and easy. Meditation or a simple breathing exercise is the most effective and efficient way to find your Center. More time consuming, but still useful, are hobbies you enjoy and clear your mind like golf, sailing, reading, quilting or gardening. The advantage of mindful breathing is that you can bring it (unnoticed) into the middle of a stressful meeting, a doctor's examining room, the plane stuck on the runway or that very boring rubber-chicken dinner.

Experiment by closing your eyes, relaxing the drawstring muscles around your mouth and eyes. Sit up straight with your weight evenly distributed along the backs of your thighs. Relax your shoulders and imagine that you can float your head above your spine. Gently empty all the stale, used-up air from your lungs. Then take six slow, quiet breaths while you keep the abdomen completely relaxed and the upper chest quiet. Focus totally on these six breaths. This is a simple, portable, invisible, healthful exercise to ease you through the stress of each day.

The biggest challenge is to remember to DO YOUR CENTERING AT LEAST ONCE A DAY. Without this discipline your mind, body and spirit stray further and further from your best work, your best health, your best voice, your clearest thinking and your most generous heart.

Stick up a note to remind yourself on your computer, on the bathroom mirror, on your car visor. Or, set the alarm on your watch to remind you to take a breathing break.

Once you learn to return to your Center on command, you will find that you are smarter, kinder, more patient and more creative than you thought.