Perform a double inhale through the nose (or mouth) followed by a long, complete exhale through the mouth (or nose) 1-3 times to quickly reduce stress by reinflating lung sacks and efficiently expelling carbon dioxide.
To rapidly slow your heart rate and calm down, deliberately make your exhales longer and/or more vigorous than your inhales, leveraging the parasympathetic nervous system.
Deliberately calm your mind (e.g., by dilating your gaze to panoramic vision) while your body is highly activated (e.g., intense exercise, cold exposure) to increase your capacity for stress and make challenging situations feel manageable.
Actively invest in social connections with trusted individuals, pets, or activities that bring delight, as this promotes serotonin release and suppresses harmful tachykinin, mitigating long-term stress effects.
Learn and practice tools to actively turn off your stress response, especially when it interferes with sleep, to prevent acute stress from becoming chronic and detrimental to health.
Engage in controlled, deliberate hyperventilation (e.g., 25-30 rapid breaths followed by breath holds) or cold exposure (ice baths/showers) to release adrenaline, which activates the immune system to combat infections. (Caution: Do not practice breath holds near water; consult a doctor for safety).
Understand emotions as a reflection of whether your internal state (alertness or calmness) matches the demands of your external situation; this framework helps interpret and manage emotional responses.
Utilize physiology-based tools (like specific breathing patterns or gaze control) to directly modulate your internal state, providing concrete agency over emotional responses rather than relying solely on mental self-talk.
Actively seek out social engagement to prevent the secretion of tachykinin, a molecule associated with increased fear, paranoia, and impaired immune function due to social isolation.
If appropriate and doctor-approved, consider supplementing L-theanine (100-200mg) during periods of chronic stress to increase GABA, reduce anxiety, and improve focus and sleep quality.
If appropriate and doctor-approved, consider supplementing Ashwagandha during periods of chronic stress to significantly reduce cortisol levels and overall feelings of stress and fatigue.
Take an all-in-one vitamin-mineral probiotic drink (e.g., Athletic Greens) once or twice daily to cover basic nutritional needs, address deficiencies, and support microbiome health.
Dissolve one packet of an electrolyte drink (e.g., Element) in 16-32 ounces of water upon waking and during exercise to maintain optimal hydration and electrolyte balance for brain and body function.
Use meditation apps (e.g., Waking Up) for various meditation programs, yoga nidra, or non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) sessions to achieve different brain-body states and restore energy.
To increase your heart rate and enhance alertness, deliberately make your inhales longer and/or more vigorous than your exhales.
Refrain from telling yourself or others to “calm down” when stressed, as this verbal instruction often exacerbates the stress response.
Regularly write down things you are thankful for, however small, to positively impact your serotonin system and foster a sense of delight and wellbeing.
When you need to deeply focus on and process information, such as during feedback or a difficult conversation, close your eyes to enhance auditory focus.
Be cautious or avoid supplementing melatonin, especially at high doses, due to its potential to suppress the reproductive axis and adrenal output, which can lead to pseudo-adrenal insufficiency.
Supplement with Vitamin D3 and K2 (e.g., through an Athletic Greens offer) because D3 is crucial for brain and body health (many are deficient), and K2 supports cardiovascular function and calcium regulation.