Curiosity is stress relief

Yesterday, I talked about widening the view.

This is a simple pointer for escaping the tunnel vision of beliefs. You’ll see similar practices promoted by modalities such as the Alexander Technique.

Earlier this week, I found another way of widening the view.

As I worked myself up into a stress about how much I had to do, I saw something else happening—my sense of possibility was narrowing. This is not something I’d noticed before. Neither had I realised that the increase in stress and decrease in possibility were inversely correlated.

Stress seems to require a kind of locking down and fixation. It’s difficult to stay stressed with an open, panoramic perspective.

Stressful thoughts assure me:

1. I don’t have enough time
2. It’s not going to turn out well
3. It would be better to throw in the towel

All of these judgements have an air of certainty about them. So it’s not surprising that curiosity dries up.

So when I noticed myself in the stress tunnel again, I tried engaging a little curiosity. Just a few thought trains that began with “I wonder”. Or moving around a little. Or taking in something beautiful with fresh eyes. Just a small gesture.

The impact was obvious. First, I started smiling a little. The stressful body sensations (throat, chest, belly) seemed to remain, but this spaciousness had opened up around them. Again, confronting the stress directly wasn’t required. You create space around it.

The stress thrives on the narrowness of view. Take that away and it’s much less scary.

The next time you feel stressed and sense your view narrow, put the process into reverse by getting curious.

Like all practices, this requires some trust and patience. But it’s something I now use daily to bring a little smile and space to my work.