Hans Selye, an Austro-Hungarian physiologist and physician, said: “It is not stress that kills us, but the way we react to it.” And this is not a metaphor, as more and more research is focusing on stress, understanding that it is a state capable of causing numerous diseases by itself.
However, relieving stress is not that difficult. There is a very simple technique that will allow us to deal with those moments when we feel, literally, about to explode, overwhelmed by the number of tasks ahead of us.
The SOS technique in three steps
The acronym SOS is universally known and indicates a call for help. The captain of a ship or the pilot of a vessel knows perfectly well what it means and how important it is, especially when they have to deal with an emergency.
When we are stressed, our body also experiences this state of emergency. In fact, cortisol and adrenaline levels shoot up, our pupils dilate and our heart rate increases, all with the aim of coping with the supposedly threatening situation. The problem is that if this state persists for hours or days, it can end up destabilizing our metabolism and causing damage at the cellular level.
That is why it is essential to combat stress as soon as it appears. However, it should be noted that the ultimate goal is not to completely eliminate stress, since a certain amount of eustress is positive for achieving our goals as it gives us an additional dose of energy. The objective of this technique is to treat anxiety and distress, to channel that energy in a positive way. The SOS technique (Stop-Organize-Select) can help you in these more difficult moments.
How is it put into practice?
- Stop. When you feel that stress is knocking at your door, the first step is to stop. In fact, the main problem is that when we have a mountain of work ahead of us, what we do is run even faster, we think that stopping is a luxury we cannot afford and we even resort to coffee or another trick to force ourselves to stay awake and focused.
However, continuing to run only serves to increase stress, to generate a state of hyperactivation that affects us both physically and mentally. That is why it is essential that we stop. Remember that the best time to relax is when we think we do not have a free minute. That is when we really need to stop.
- Organize. When we get stressed, we are overcome by many emotions, but the most pressing of these is the feeling of being overwhelmed or overloaded. This is often due to not having spent enough time organizing tasks. In fact, what stresses us out is not usually the tasks themselves, but the feeling of being overwhelmed because we don’t know where to start or when we can finish. In this way, tasks that may be simple are added to the others and we perceive them as activities that require a great effort, when in reality this is not the case.
Therefore, to combat stress, it is essential that you take as objective a picture as possible of the tasks you have ahead of you and how you are going to carry them out. It is about organizing these activities, giving them a priority and even, if there are many, it is advisable to write them down. Never underestimate the therapeutic power of a pencil. When you make a list of everything you have to do during the day or the next week, you will notice that your head is emptied of worries and that you can think more clearly.
- Select. We are not Superman, and the sooner we accept this, the better for our psychological balance. This means that we have limited resources, both in terms of time and effort. Therefore, to combat stress, it is essential that you learn to prioritize tasks. In fact, the difference between people who let themselves be defeated by circumstances and those who improve their performance in stressful situations is that the latter know how to clear the way, remove obstacles, eliminate superficial things and focus on what really matters.
There are times when we simply cannot handle everything. In this case, it is advisable to choose the most important tasks or projects. In fact, consider that it is precisely the less important tasks that take up the most time, to the point of becoming a black hole through which your energy escapes. Remember that more is not always better. Sometimes it is better to do less, but with greater quality or with more peace of mind. Your psychological balance will thank you for this change of perspective and, in the long run, it will have a positive impact on all areas of your life.
Fighting stress from the source
The SOS t▷echnique is a lifesaver, something we can apply when we are at our limit. However, the ideal is not to have to go to that extreme. In fact, if we think about it carefully, in many cases we create stress ourselves, being unable to say no, putting off tasks until the last minute or obsessively devoting ourselves to work, leaving no time for relaxation.
However, it is important to be aware that small everyday stress situations profoundly alter what is known as cardiac coherence. In practice, every time we are stressed, our heart begins to beat irregularly, although we are usually not aware of it. However, sustained stress over time can deeply damage the functioning of the parasympathetic system and the heart, leading to a heart attack.
Therefore, it is best to combat stress at its source by making some changes in the way we understand and deal with the demands of daily life.
