How do you calm down?

Follow up 1&2: how much time do you have and how much calm do you need? Some kind of hot and cold always help me (it can be jumping jacks and a cool shower) but better yet a trip to the Russian banya. Maybe even a scrub or massage if you can swing it. At home, hot bath and greogorian chants with nice lavender oil Long walks observing what’s in bloom in your neighborhood Listening to Alan watts recordings Journaling out all the noise via brain dump sessions

This youtube video has saved me so many times, mostly for migrane relief but could be used for anxiety or general calmness. I describe this as a brain massage, call me crazy but I can physically feel it relieve tension immediately. Soundproof headphones and a dark room/eye mask are recommended. Also better if you have youtube premium to avoid the ads, I dont have it but I should listen to my own advice on that part lol https://youtu.be/5jmrIggwCXc?si=V-uSrGYG5ZysBAwR

Taking walks in a wooded area and petting a friendly dog are evergreen. Listening to nature sounds (George Vlad has lots of great stuff on YouTube) while in an infrared sauna is a great reset. Playing Animal Crossing, diving for sea creatures especially, is the only form of digital entertainment where I can watch my stress biomarkers improve. * * * For YouTube content, I use yt-dlp and ffmpeg on my computer to capture soothing videos and/or extract their audio tracks. I keep some of these o my phone for an offline, ad-free experience. I’m also generally happier the less I use my phone but here we are.

This is a specific in-the-moment thing but running cold water on the inner wrists and dabbing it on the collarbone / behind the ears provokes some kind of nervous system slowdown that really works! Good for if you feel overwhelmed in public or on the plane, etc!

Learning to breath with my diaphragm, which required learning how to first open up my chest with stretches. Also, listening to nature sounds like frogs or crickets or birds. Smelling fresh herbs like basil or lavender, I love the balance app for meditations. Bird watching or bumble bee watching. Sitting or working in my garden. Going for a run, Exercising or going for a walk outside. Snuggling with my cat. All of these bring me to the present moment and force me to slow down.