Do This 1 Thing To Boost Your Mood and Feel Less Overwhelmed (As a Highly Sensitive Person)
All my friends were doing it.
Marathons and triathlons and hiking the Appalachian trail.
Physical endurance challenges were all the rage.
Meanwhile, I was an absolute master at the couch marathon. I had it down to a science. I was setting a personal record on a weekly basis.
As a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), I needed to rest and recharge and nothing seemed more perfect than couch surfing.
On a summer Saturday morning, while friends woke up early to exercise before the heat set in, I relished the blank day ahead of me for doing nothing but watching TV. Fueled with candy and junk food, I finished up the day in the exact same spot that I started it.
Then in my early 30s, I was ready to expand my concept of what I could do.
After yet another friend started training for a marathon, I wondered about me. Not for a marathon, but for a half marathon. After all, I needed to be realistic.
I found a training program, egged my sister to run it with me, and signed up for the Labor Day Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon.
As a sensitive person, I was ready to prove to myself that I could do whatever I put my mind to.
I figured I’d have at least one moment of crisis along the way. I envisioned a catastrophe of some sort. An emotional breakdown, getting lost, or recreating a traumatic high school running mishap by pooping my pants on a long run. Yup, it happens to the best of us.
But none of that happened. I had some wicked banana cravings but no soul-crushing unexpected blowouts or dream-dashing emotional breakdowns.
On race day, I removed any competitive pressure. I would run my own race, at my own speed. My goal was to get to the finish line with minimal walking.
I was well-prepared and finished with my head held high.
What I discovered was that by committing and following a simple training plan, I could do what I put my mind to.
Running the half marathon became a metaphor for being able to do anything.
And in truth, exercise transforms people.
And I’m not only talking about your ability to believe in yourself, feel confident, and meet goals.
I’m talking about how exercise changes you within the span of a 20-minute workout.
The amygdala or the fight-or-flight part of the brain is easily overly activated for Highly Sensitive People.
But the amygdala also houses receptors for endocannabinoids, the “don’t worry, be happy” chemical.
These endorphins are released after 20-minutes of moderately hard continual exercise that gets your heart pumping. Cycling, walking on an incline on a treadmill, and hiking have all been proven to trigger the happy response.
What was formerly thought to be a runner’s high is really a release of endorphins to make you feel better and stronger so you’ll keep moving.
When endocannabinoids lock into the amygdala and prefrontal cortex they:
Reduce anxiety and lower your sense of being overwhelmed.
Increase feelings of inner peace.
Increase optimism.
Reduce social anxiety.
Increase your pain tolerance.
On days you exercise, you’re less likely to feel overwhelmed and to have your mental well-being rocked by stressful events.
As an HSP, that’s a very good thing.
But what if you’ve never been an exerciser and aren’t sure you can get into it?
The Joy Of Movement
If you’ve never been into exercise, Kelly McGonigal’s book, The Joy of Movement, will leave you inspired and ready to show yourself what you can do.
Reading the book, you may suspect that Kelly is an HSP. She says:
My parents generously called my early temperament sensitive and shy, but a more accurate description of me as a child would’ve been scared. I was the kid begging not to go on amusement park rides, who got sick to my stomach before math tests and birthday parties…
She adds:
I have a brain that expects calamity and is easily overwhelmed. If I had to guess my biologically determined psychological setpoint, I’d located it somewhere between “on high alert“ and “consumed by dread”.
Kelly shares her own experience of reducing worry using exercise. Her stories of people using exercise to rebound from tragedy will move you and make you want to workout.
Do an exercise experiment
If you’re still on the fence about exercising, do a comparison.
On Saturday, get up and do 20-minutes of moderately challenging, heart pumping exercise.
Move in whatever way feels good.
Then on Sunday, just rest.
Compare the quality of your days.
See for yourself how being in motion transforms emotion. And how sticking with it over time, ultimately changes your life.