Stress Monkey Solutions

15/11/2025

14/11/2025

The First Habit That Helps Your Nervous System Recover

Drink water before tea or coffee.
Hydration supports blood pressure, reduces early-morning cortisol spikes, and improves HRV.
Small shifts stabilise the system more than dramatic resets.

14/11/2025

Thank you to everyone who came along on Saturday to Still Standing. Your openness and presence shaped the whole session.

Deep gratitude to Alzheimer Scotland for their continued support — and Age Scotland, whose backing makes this work possible.

Here are some wonderful reflections from participants:
• “I feel lighter.”
• “More grounded and calm.”
• “It helped me reconnect with myself.”
• “Such a safe, supportive space.”
• “Exactly what I needed today.”

Still Standing is becoming a place for movement, release and quiet strength.
Thank you for being part of it 🩷

14/11/2025

A Grounding Reset for an Overfull Mind

When thoughts spiral, the system needs orientation, not discipline.

Try this:
Press your feet into the floor.
Unclench your jaw.
Identify one sound, one colour, one shape in the room.
This brings you back into present time, where the body can settle.

13/11/2025

When the Body Feels Heavy
Inflammation, bloating, swelling, and sudden exhaustion often appear when emotional load has been held for too long.
Your body mirrors what hasn’t had space to be processed.
Instead of fighting the heaviness, ask:
What is my system carrying that my mind hasn’t named yet?
The body expresses the truth first.

13/11/2025

Compassion Fatigue Isn’t a Personality Failure
If you’re someone who holds space for others — professionally or personally — compassion fatigue doesn’t mean you’ve failed.
It often means your system has been overextended for too long without replenishment.
This is biology, not weakness.
Rest isn’t optional; it’s a stabiliser.
Today, notice where you’re giving more than your system can afford, and soften there.

12/11/2025

Why the Long Exhale Works
A longer exhale signals the nervous system that you’re safe enough to downshift.
It reduces heart rate, softens cortisol output, and brings the body out of high alert.
Try 4 seconds in, 7 seconds out.
It’s simple, and the nervous system responds quickly to simple.

11/11/2025

When Dreams Become Loud
At this time of year, people often notice their dreams becoming more vivid, emotional, or symbolic.
This isn’t random.
When the system slows down, the deeper layers finally have space to speak.
You don’t need to decode anything.
Just notice the themes that repeat — the body and psyche are reorganising, even when you sleep.

11/11/2025

Where the Right Side Tightens
Many people carry effort, responsibility, and unspoken pressure in the right side of the body.
If you feel tightness through the ribs, hip, shoulder, or lower back on that side, place your left hand there.
Exhale.
Let the tissue soften.
This isn’t about stretching; it’s about meeting the part of you that’s been holding everything up on its own.

10/11/2025

When Retreat Isn’t Avoidance
If you feel yourself withdrawing, becoming quieter, or seeking solitude, don’t assume you’re slipping backwards.
At this point in the yearly cycle, retreat is a normal instinct.
Your system may be integrating or protecting something tender.
Instead of pushing yourself “back out there,” ask gently:
What part of me needs warmth, rest, or shelter today?
Integration looks like retreat long before it looks like progress.