Module Three
Learning about your levels - all of us have different levels or some would say spectrums in which we perform best and I go into the functional side of this and how this feels in our body below. But firstly Id like to touch on the levels we might have with in the kitchen.
As you may have noticed on this course all of the recipes I have provided are quick and simple but most importantly (in my opinion) there are boosted with goodness and showing you useful ways to be able to achieve them even in the busy world we live in.
However, I think it’s important to notice that we all have different levels to which we might want to be cooking. Some of us might just want to make the bear minimum but make sure its doing us good, others might want to dive deep into the inner world of sourdough making and looking into dough temperature and different times of grains to experiment with. Neither is right or wrong.. it’s just your level, where you are at right now and this may of course change over time and during different stages in your life - but being rooted in the basics and core principles of cooking will help you.
We all have, what I call our “levels” - where we feel most comfortable and able to achieve our day to day activities. This is typically referred to as the “Window of Tolerance” - (although James Dowler renamed it “Window of Capacity” - noting how “tolerance” can give off tones of negativity). There is a body of science now being presented regarding the language we use on ourselves and others and the effects it can have on us.
The Window of Capacity is the space where you can “process signals from your environment without becoming too reactive or too withdrawn” James Dowler.
When you are in the Window of Capacity you feel stable and anchored and able to take on life challenges.
When you are outside of this Window as you can feel either activated, and stressed (hyperarousal/ fight or flight) or shut down, low and deflated (hypoarousal), .
When you can begin to start to notice the internal interplay within your system you can begin to try and support it more - its deeply individual and unique to you, however there are some key things to be aware of -
Micro-stresses: These are small moments of stress throughout the day that seem manageable individually, but have a cumulative impact. Think of never-ending emails and WhatsApp groups - these can lead to something called “allostatic overload” where our nervous systems struggle to keep up with the demands placed on them and over time symptoms can show - such as fatigue, digestive issues etc
What do I mean by internal or external worlds?
Internal is more the voice inside your head. When you go deeper into yourself and your thoughts. In terms of stress this might be, when you are running scenarios repeatedly in your mind and fixated on a negative outcome - so you might want to look for ways to move away from this mental state into more or an external state.
External world is when you are paying attention to what’s going on outside of you. In terms of stress this might be that the external environment you are in is heightened and noisy and causing you overwhelm and dysregulation. So, you may want to bring your awareness more with in and find time away from the external stressors.
Once you can determine which is which can help you decide which practises/ rituals might work best for your system.
Hyperarousal or Sympathetic Auroral
Let me give you an example - you’ve had a busy day, with plenty of noise and external inputs from a busy day at work, you’ve felt rushed at times and have a strong need to slow down. This is a time when your external environment might be proving too much for your system - so a long hot bath, listening to calming music or making some sourdough might help to calm our system down from hyperarousal to ventral.
Hypoarousal or Dorsal Shutdown
However, if you suddenly receive an email from someone saying you’ve done something wrong and are being accused of something - you might find your mind is full of internal chatter and very hard to turn off. You might find talking to a close friend, going for a walk in nature and focusing more on the external environment around you will help to disconnect you from the chatter - to ORIENT you back to safety.
Take a look at the image below and see where you might feel things in your body - the more aware you can become the more you can empower yourself to work with your mind and body
YOUR BODY TALKS TO YOU
Believe it or not our body does usually give us clues when it’s out of balance. Disease (dis - ease) is often created from suppressed emotions stored in the body which books like “the body keeps the score” by Bessel van de Kolk and “when the body says no” by Gabor Mate have done extensive research into .
As I have spoken about at length throughout this course, listening to the internal narratives, as well as how things feel in your body can help to “map” what states you are in, leading to a better understanding of how to bring yourself back to SAFETY.
However I equally love James Dowlers refreshing perspective on this topic HERE - which opens up the narritive around it slightly more, as its much more complicated than simply just “listening to your body”.
In TCM they often use the tongue as a great gauge for health and it can be a useful tool to add to your own individual toolbox that you can create of recipes, practises and rituals that best supports you.
Look at the chart below and possibly start noticing your tongue a bit more - which tongue does it correlate most to from the below images?
language matters
language matters
The language you use matters - it literally creates the world that we perceive. Did you know that uur brain doesn’t recognise sarcasm - so if you say in jest “I’m so stupid” it will believe that to be true.
Choosing words that can support your mind state can have a big impact and constantly bringing your thoughts back to a place of safety an important part.
““Words are energy and cast spells — that’s why it’s called spelling.” ”
Lets get things clear - this course isn’t all about trying to create a life of balance… life (if you haven’t noticed) is rarely “balanced” but in a constant state of “flux”. What we are wanting is the possibility of experiencing life in a way that feels healthy and achievable to us. I believe by learning to recognise when you are “activated” or “shut down” it can help you to become aware of when you might need to look to create SAFETY and stability with in yourself - so that you can respond appropriately to the stresses that life might bring to you.
HOW TO CREATE SAFETY
We are all unique and have a different spectrums as to what safety and stability really means and feels to us - but bringing awareness to the outside world and then slowly bringing it inwards can be very effective. Our brain is constantly using information around us to let us know where we are in the world, what to do and so on - bringing in the outside world (if its safe to do so) can have a very organising effect on it.
For me creating a home environment that feels safe has also been very important - again this links back to the organising effect it has on the brain. Surrounding yourself with plants and nature will also amplify these feeling.
Also starting to make friends with that internal voice, reassuring it that its done a wonderful job at keeping you safe - can over time make you feel more internally capable.