Discover Your 4 Mind-Body Channels Controlling Your Thoughts, Feelings, Behavior, and Health

Think for a few minutes about how your mood can fluctuate and change throughout your day depending on expectations of self and others, relationships, health, finance, and things to look forward to. I want to introduce you to your channels of your thought and behavior. Your Stress Reflex Reaction triggers your Fight/Anger/Rage, Flight/Anxiety/Panic, and/or Freeze/Shutdown Channels controlling your thought and behavior. Once this reactivity happens your very own Stress Hormones like Adrenaline, Norepinephrine, and Cortisol (i.e., Loud Hormones) oversee your thoughts and behavior pushing you to swift decisions safety decisions even if you are already safe. If you are not in danger these Loud hormones can disrupt mood, relationships, communication, health, problem solving and wellbeing. If you are in immediate danger swift decisions scripted by your stress hormones will save your life.

Your Relaxation Responding Channel is what I have named your Preference Channel. In this channel of thought and behavior you oversee choosing your thoughts, action plans, decisions, and activities. You get to be yourself and you feel calm enough to process your stressors based on personal preferences of free choice and free speech. Your decisions you make in this Preference channel are not immediate but calm and thoughtful instead. You are capable of decision making based on what is best in your opinion overall and in the long run. Your Relaxation Hormones like Serotonin, Endorphins, Oxytocin, and Dopamine allow this thoughtful better feeling decision-making process to be available. The Preference Channel is calmer and better feeling and spurs along memory, intelligence, curiosity, creativity, fun, playfulness, humorous ideas, gratitude, acceptance of loss, joy, and improved participation in hobbies, physical activities, and interests.

While you can get stuck in your Stress Reflex Channels of processing for days, weeks, months, maybe even years, you cannot get stuck in your Preference Channel of mind body processing. In fact, it will take effort on your part to access your Preference Channel. The requirement to enter this special channel is physical and mental Relaxation. Relaxing your muscles and mind for a few minutes is your access key to the most important part of yourself and identity. We all think and behave the similarly in the Stress Reflex Channels. We are our different and unique selves when we are relaxed.

Anyone can relax when things are going well. However, relaxing under pressure is difficult to learn how to do on demand. The requirement is Relaxation practices daily for 5-30 minutes per day. Relaxation is achieved with physical activity, fun activities, meditation, music, playfulness, yoga, bubble baths, showers and any 5–30-minute activity you enjoy. The reason it is important to practice relaxing when you are safe is so you can exit the Stress Reactivity racket controlling your mind and behavior. Once you exit the Loud Stress Reflex Channels through the magic door of Relaxation you can be yourself. Since the Stress Reactive Channels are our default, it is important to stay aware of Relaxing often throughout the day for at least 5 minutes. To that end I have created and continue to create 5-minute Relaxation Exercises. Please help yourself to your Preference Channel often daily.