Ever had one of those days where you’re juggling a million things, and then you snap at your friend or family member about some little thing? All that stress suddenly bubbles over, leaving you feeling drained and a bit ashamed.
Ever wondered how can you be less triggered?
Picture your brain as a bucket—a “stress bucket” that fills up with every stressor you encounter. Work deadlines, relationship hiccups, the idiot driver, the sleep you didn’t get last night—they all add drops to your bucket. When it overflows, you find yourself lashing out, catastrophizing, or spiraling into shame.
Our brains don’t differentiate between types of stress. Physical, emotional, work-related—it’s all just water in the bucket. Traditional stress management techniques like conscious deep breathing, positive thinking, and time management often fall short because they address the thinking part of the brain. But when you’re triggered into a negative reaction, its your survival brain usually needs attention.
It’s like trying to explain to your 1-year-old all the scientific, well-thought-out reasons she should go to sleep now. She doesn’t need reasons, she needs care.
Did you know it’s possible to expand your bucket? To create more space so you can handle life’s curveballs with grace? It’s all about understanding how your nervous system works—its inputs, interpretations, and outputs. By tweaking the inputs and changing how your brain interprets them, you change the outputs.
Learning to create more space in your “stress bucket” is the first step towards a calmer you. It’s the foundation for better relationships, improved work performance, and most importantly, a more peaceful existence. You can take up your space in the world without feeling overwhelmed by it.
Approaching life’s ups and downs with a sense of calm and confidence is a learnable skill. You can expand your capacity to handle stress and trust yourself more.
Your future, calmer self is waiting to meet you.
