THE EMOTIONAL TOLL OF 2020

IT’S NO SECRET THIS YEAR HAS BEEN PARTICULARLY CHALLENGING IN A MYRIAD OF WAYS. LIFE ALWAYS COMES WITH ITS SHARE OF DIFFICULTIES; HOWEVER, 2020 BROUGHT WITH IT A MORE CONSISTENT FLOW OF STRESS TRIGGERS.

kWRITTEN BY DR. PATRICK PORTER,

NEUROSCIENCE EXPERT AND CREATOR OF BRAINTAP®

About Dr. Patrick Porter

Patrick K. Porter, Ph.D., is an award-winning author and speaker who has devoted his career to neuroscience and brainwave entrainment. As the creator of BrainTap®, Dr. Porter has emerged as a leader in the digital health and wellness field. BrainTap’s digital tools and mind development apps use Creative Visualization and Relaxation, a biohacking technique that has made tremendous advances in helping mental, physical, and emotional health issues. BrainTap has been praised for helping people relieve symptoms associated with stress, insomnia, pain, and much more. For more information visit www.braintap.com.

Among COVID-19, this year has been overwhelmed with political tensions, racial FEATURE prejudice, unemployment spikes, natural disasters, and completely new routines. Yet through upheaval of our normal lives, the day-to-day stressors remained unchanged: bills, work, school, and more moved forward at a rapid pace. The emotional toll of 2020 topped with everyday stress can cause health problems, financial worries, worsening of mental health conditions, changes in eating and sleeping, and an overall rise in worry.

If you’re feeling completely undone after a year as traumatic as 2020, you’re not alone. Our bodies are designed to use stress as a tool of survival. But what happens when we are in survival mode nearly every day all day? Understanding this may help us better understand the emotional toll of 2020 and where we go from here.

How Stress Affects the Body

When our bodies are in survival mode, our central nervous system triggers our fight, flight, or freeze response. This response in the brain causes the body to release hormones attributed to stress: cortisol and adrenaline. Stress hormones cause blood flow to increase to the heart, muscles, and brain for quick thinking survival. However, if stress is chronic and constant, the body is unable to turn off the response and return to normal hormone levels. This can cause further issues, such as the following: l Irritability l Increased mental health conditions l Digestion issues l Difficulty sleeping & daytime grogginess l Increased chronic health issues l Weakened immune system

Combating Chronic Stress Triggers

It’s crucial to create a system for your body to reset and recharge for the day. Allowing stress to build can cause issues in both your mind and body, like when pipes continuously get backed up with no place to release the pressure. Here are helpful ways to release some of the built-up pressure from this year: l Spend time with nature. Our minds and bodies do better when we take our eyes from the harmful screens and addicting technology we’re constantly using. Spending time in the outdoors allows us to gravitate toward the healing influence of being with nature and allowing ourselves to rest from the constant flow of stress. On the days you cannot get outside, BrainTap provides the healing wavelengths of being out in nature at the touch of a button on the app or through the headset.

l Take a break from social media. The world changes rapidly around us — faster than any other point in history. One such area is in the use of social media. Our brains have not yet evolved to be able to handle the opinions and influence of hundreds, let alone thousands, of others. Humans traditionally have lived in small tribes, villages, and communities; today, we may still live in a small town or even a big city, but social media causes us to have more eyes on us than we are yet equipped to handle. Taking a break from the unattainable standards seen on social media, as well as the temptation to compare ourselves to one another, allows us to soothe the stress that affects our minds and bodies.

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Keep in touch with loved ones. Remaining intact with friends and families is crucial for not only surviving in life but thriving. We’re social beings, and as such, we need to create and maintain relationships throughout our lives. Though COVID-19 protocol can often make this difficult, technology can be a great tool to remain connected with our loved ones. Plan regular calls and ways to reach out to your friends, family, and community to help ease the day-to-day stress.

l Create a routine — and stick to it. COVID-19 has caused a major shock to everyone’s daily routines. Routines are important not only to accomplish the tasks you need to get complete during the day and week, but also for our overall brain health. Our brains thrive on routine and predictability, especially for those who struggle with mental health conditions and addictions. Plan out your day and week, scheduling out the things you need to get done and when you’ll accomplish what’s required. This includes keeping a regular routine of sleeping, eating, and working. Doing so allows the brain to function better and your body to deal with stress as it comes and goes.

l Exercise your body. It’s well-known endorphins make you happy. Each day strive to get your heart rate accelerated and moving; changing your heart rate each day will slowly allow you to change your life. Exercising allows the brain and body to process stress and negative emotions, while flooding the body with positive endorphins. Additionally, sitting inside all day in a hunched over position looking at screens can cause a major strain on your body. Exercising and getting your body moving helps stretch out your body, healing both body and mind.

Moving Forward

The emotional toll of 2020 can be a learning experience if we so choose. Much of the baggage of 2020 will follow us into 2021; nevertheless, we can be stronger, more prepared, and better capable to deal with the stress of whatever is to come in the new year. l