#241 Disengaging from the Mind's Momentum & Unnecessarily High Cortisol Levels

     On getting out of bed in the morning, I can feel my brain revving up - getting all the balls I'll be juggling during the day up in the air above my head.

     The biochemical mechanism behind this is the cortisol awakening response (CAR) - "the sharp increase in cortisol release observed over the first 30 min after awakening. ... the cortisol rise after awakening reflects the anticipation of the day’s demands."

     Most of us do not face real danger in our daily work - we artificially create stress by magnifying insignificant things out of proportion & by "multitasking" ie failing to focus our whole mind-heart-body on completing each task - one at a time.
     Now I know that I have a choice first thing in the morning: 1) to become one with (cognitive fusion) speeding-up thoughts OR 2) see them as just thoughts (not reality itself) from an objective, observer perspective (cognitive defusion).
     Most of my life I've gone with #1 by default, but I no longer want to be swept away by the momentum of stressful busyness. Now I'm able to choose #2! It's like putting my foot on the clutch, and disengaging from a revving engine. It's quite obvious, and quite wonderful! On the rare occasion when there's something truly stressful coming up in my day, then I focus on meeting that challenge, so more cortisol is appropriately released.
     "a flexible adaptation of the CAR to situational demands was associated with positive states & traits (ie low stress, low neuroticism & high happiness). Conversely, a loss of flexibility - which resulted in a level of arousal that was either too low or too high compared to environmental demands - was associated with negative states & traits."

       Mikolajczak M et al. Cortisol awakening response (CAR)'s flexibility leads to larger and more consistent associations with psychological factors than CAR magnitude. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2010; 35(5): 752-7.

Photo: grantbush   www.dpreview.com