My Favourite Question to Relieve Stress in the Moment

A Simple Question That Changes Everything

Are you in your head or in the world? 

This is a question I ask myself as I move through daily life. It may be helpful for you too. When we are in our heads, we are usually making things up. We are living in stories about ourselves and usually not very kind ones. That loud inner voice says we are a bit rubbish, that we cannot do this and that, and that we are an imposter. Living there slows us down and keeps us stuck.

Time Travelling And Why It Feels So Heavy

When you are in your head, you will be time travelling. The mind wanders into the past and into the future. The body does not time travel. It sits here in the present moment and lets you know when your psychology has drifted. Ruminating about the past pulls your mood down and imagined futures invite anxiety. Those sensations you feel in your body are like the little arms on a pinball machine nudging you back to the middle, back to now.

From a 3 Principles perspective, this makes complete sense. Our moment to moment experience is created by Thought, felt via Consciousness, within the energy of Mind. We are always feeling thought in the moment and never our circumstances. When thought speeds up about the past or the future, the body shows us we have moved away from what is real right now.

Your Clever Body Knows

Tension, tightness, a heavy chest, or those angry butterflies in your stomach are not proof that you are broken. They are guidance. The system is showing you that you are believing something untrue about the past or the future. Presence brings a different feeling. Life may still need handling, yet there is more steadiness and more clarity.

Life Will Still Life

Sydney Banks said life is a contact sport. Unless you choose to live in a small hole and avoid other humans, you will meet the world and it will sometimes be messy. Most of what we call problems live in our heads. An email that points out a missed detail can turn into a catastrophe in our thinking. In the world, it is simply something to put right now. End of story.

What We Can See Via The 3 Principles

Consider this via the 3 Principles and it becomes kinder. Your well-being is innate. It is a well of being that does not switch off. Calm and clarity are not created by effort. They are revealed when thought settles. Presence is the gateway because it uncovers what was never lost.

The Ice Cream Factory

I often think of this understanding like an ice cream factory. The base process is the same for every tub, then a flavour gets added. Human experience is like that. The flavour of thought varies from person to person. Decision anxiety, worry about what others think, fear about what is next, it is all flavour. The creation of experience is universal. What we are believing in each moment creates our experience.

The Weight Of Overthinking

Overthinking can feel like layer upon layer of thinking sitting on the body. It can feel draining, as if the energy is being pulled out of you. As you look in this direction, patterns become visible. The same reactions show up at similar moments. That predictability is a useful clue. You are not seeing the truth. You are seeing a habit of thought that has gathered speed.

The Snow Globe And The Hot Rock

Picture a snow globe after a strong shake. Everything fizzes up so nothing is clear. Put it down and it settles on its own. Peace appears as the swirling falls away. Holding on to overthinking is like gripping a hot rock. The moment you realise you are holding it, you can drop it. Clarity returns as the mind settles.

Let The Train Leave Without You

Crazy trains of thought pull into the station all the time. There is often a tiny moment where you can sense yourself about to step on board. If you are settled enough, you can let that train leave for crazy thinking town without you. Perhaps you do get on and travel a couple of stops. You can still notice the drain on your energy and get off. There is always another chance to stand on the platform of the present moment.

Simple Ways To Come Home To Now

Yoga reminded me again today. Hold the pose and focus on your breath. As you move, focus on your breath. Notice your feet on the floor. Feel the tightness or the angry butterflies if they are there. Breath and body do not time travel. They anchor you in reality, and reality is where your well-being lives. You do not have to chase it or create it. The mind can settle naturally when you put the thinking down.

You Are Never Broken

Your well-being cannot be stolen or damaged. It is there all the time. Seeing this for yourself is profoundly relieving. The clarity of mind available in presence can take your breath away. Ask yourself during the day, am I in my head or in the world. If the answer is in my head, awareness has already loosened the grip. The system begins to reset.

A Gentle Invitation

If you notice familiar patterns, if stress, overwhelm, and stuckness keep circling, you are not alone. There is nothing wrong with you. There is busy thinking that looks real until it does not. From a 3 Principles perspective, presence reveals your natural steadiness, and from there the next step is easier to see.

If you would like a calm space to explore this more deeply, you are warmly invited to reach out for a Thriving Life Clarity Call. No pressure. We will look together at what becomes possible when you return to what is already here.