Stress Reduction: A Personal Plan

It has occurred to me that when we are overly stressed, what we are actually encountering is a misuse of our personal energy. In the same way that we are collectively misusing the sources of fuel that the earth has to offer and causing global stress, on a personal level we can sometimes find ourselves misusing our personal sources of fuel.  So, perhaps reducing stress is a process of reducing our use of unhealthy personal energy.

Let me explain this idea further:

Energy Descent Action Plans (or EDAPs) are a recognised part of the work of Transition Towns and, for local communities, are an accepted method for working towards achieving a sustainable and resilient way of living, freed from their dependence on fossil fuels – an unhealthy and unsustainable energy source.  How can we apply this to our personal lives? What strategies are there that we can use to reduce the stress we experience on a personal leveI – to reduce our dependence on unhealthy and unsustainable personal energy sources? In The Transition Handbook, Rob Hopkins suggests that we tackle the EDAP in 4 parts – Present, Vision, Practical Steps and Resources. Here they are below with my ideas for adopting these processes in our personal lives.

Present – our analysis of what’s happening now.

The Warning Signs: What are the signs that our stress levels are too high?  They might be sleep and digestive disturbances, failing relationships, frequent ill health or irritability and tearfulness for example.

Energy Sources: What type of energy are we using and how much? Examples of unsustainable personal energy might be excessive working or socialising, overconsumption of food, alcohol, caffeine, nicotine or recreational drugs. We might also be surviving mainly on fast food or an unbalanced diet of pre-prepared meals. We can think of adrenaline as being the personal equivalent of fossil fuels. Using a little occasionally can be useful, but sustained use of large quantities usually leads to disaster.

Energy Conservation: What sort of “personal insulation” are we using and how much do we have? I like to think of our personal insulation as the collection of methods we use to ensure that we minimise our use of unhealthy personal energy and keep the renewable energies flowing. For example, in order to minimise our use of alcohol, we might decide to chat through some of our problems at work with a mentor or friend. So, having a support network of people we can turn to for help might be part of our “personal insulation”. Feeling more personally empowered through attending a workshop on emotional intelligence, might be another example. Any work we can do on our personal or spiritual development can contribute to our “personal insulation” and will thus reduce our need for unhealthy personal energy.

Vision – A vivid, detailed description of what we’re working towards.

We need to decide on how far ahead we want to visualise – 5, 10 or 15 years from now?
Our vision might include a slower pace of life, a more harmonious relationship with friends and family, a nutritious diet, time to exercise, meaningful work and manageable stress levels. We might also imagine time for spontaneity, to contribute on a voluntary basis to a good cause, time for reflection or spiritual practice and fewer things in our life that we feel we’re just tolerating rather than enjoying. Some people also like to include a financial element in their vision, with few or no debts and greater disposable income, while others would prefer more interdependence and team work in their life, more involvement in their local community and a broader network of friends.

Practical Steps – Which path will we take?

Historical data: What have I learned from the past? When have I needed to reduce my use of unhealthy personal energy before? What worked then? What didn’t? What does this tell me?

Advice: This can take a number of forms and much of this will be down to personal preference and learning styles: guidebooks/workbooks, articles, useful websites and forums, courses, personal friends and acquaintances etc.

Resources – What materials or connections we might need.

Renewable personal energy: In the same way that energy solutions on a worldly, practical scale are likely to be varied and a combination of different means, so renewable energy on a personal level is about using whatever is right in each context from a range of possibilities. Examples of sources of renewable personal energy might be:

• Time spent with friends.
• A good night’s sleep.
• A walk in the park.
• Meals prepared at home from fresh, wholesome ingredients.
• Meditation.
• Gratitude, generosity and sharing.
• Love.

Knowing which one of these to use at any one time will depend on us operating more from our hearts than our heads. It will involve being present to what wants to emerge in each moment, rather than forcing a particular outcome. Stress reduction then becomes mostly about cultivating presence and awareness of what’s going on around us and within us and focusing on being rather than on doing.

Conclusion

By reflecting on a Personal Energy Descent Action Plan, we can embark upon a more sustainable, less stressful path for ourselves that embodies improved health, resilience to change and the unforeseen, time for relaxation, contribution, wholesome relationships and opportunities for meaningful work.

Suggested further reading: Full Catastrophe Living. Jon Kabat Zinn.