For when you are overwhelmed, anxious and in severe distress

TIPP is a useful series of steps to try when you are in a state of overwhelm or feel out of control with your emotional responses. I will first explain what the steps are and how to do them, and then share the science behind it.

• Temperature
• Intense exercise
• Paced breathing
• Paired muscle relaxation

Temperature

Having a panic attack? Experiencing overwhelming emotions? Experienced something acutely distressing? Try cooling yourself down. Have a cold shower, hold some ice cubes, splash your face with cold water. Peppermint oil or a menthol balm can simulate the effects of the cold.

If you have been under a lot of stress for a long time, or experiencing muscle tension and anxiety without the panic attack, try heat.

Intense exercise

Pair your intense emotion with some intense exercise. Dance, run, jump, do push ups, swing your arms around.

Paced breathing

Control your breathing. The easiest way to do this is box breathing: in for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, out for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds and continue until you feel more clam.

Some people hate to control their breath. If that’s you, you can also try singing or humming.

Paired Muscle Relaxation

While you are box breathing, focus on one set of muscles at a time. Tense one group of muscles as much as possible for 5 seconds. Release and move onto the next set of muscles.

I highly recommend practicing TIPP when you are not overwhelmed. This is a skill that like any other skill, is more effective with practice.

You are also more likely to remember to do this if you have already practiced!

The science behind Temperature

Cold therapy like holding an ice cube or having a cold shower activates the Diver’s Reflex. The Diver’s Reflex is present in all mammals and triggers the body to slow it’s breathing and heart rate (See: The Mammalian Diving Response: Inroads to Its Neural Control). When you are experiencing a panic attack or overwhelming emotion, your heart rate is possibly heightened and your breathing is possibly quick and shallow. Cold therapy helps to quickly you bring your heart rate and breathing back to it’s normal state.

Heat on the other hand, promotes circulation and encourages the muscles to relax.

The science behind Intense exercise

Exercise helps to release endorphins which are ‘feel good’ chemicals. Additionally, exercise improves the functioning of the pre-frontal cortex (see: Acute Exercise Improves Prefrontal Cortex but not Hippocampal Function in Healthy Adults). This is the part of the brain that is responsible for executive functioning: the ability to problem solve, create a plan and action that plan to completion. The pre-frontal cortex is also the part of the brain that goes ‘offline’ when we are experiencing acute stress. This is because the mind needs to be able to react quickly and through instinct (see: Prefrontal cortex executive processes affected by stress in health and disease).

Stress also typically releases adrenaline to give you more energy. When this energy doesn’t go anywhere it can heighten feelings of stress. Exercise therefore, can help to burn off that excess energy.

The science behind Paced breathing

Paced breathing is used to activate what is called the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for starting the processes that help your body to relax. This includes reducing the amount of work that your lungs might be doing, slowing your heart rate down, increase digestion so that you can have more energy, amongst others!

The science behind Paired muscle relaxation

By tensing and then relaxing your muscles, you create a contrast between the tense and relaxed state. This means that you are better able to identify when your muscles are tensed and needing to relax. Without creating tension, you might miss where tension remains in your body.

Research (see: Efficacy of Progressive Muscle Relaxation in Adults for Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: A Systematic Review) demonstrates that in people experiencing anxiety or other distress, Progressive Muscle Relaxation is effective from anywhere between five minutes and 28 minutes. It is more also effective when paired with other techniques such as music therapy, mindfulness meditation, and deep breathing.

So if you’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed, give it a shot! It won’t cure the source of what is happening for you but this could be a useful tool in your toolbelt to help you navigate adversity.