I'm addicted to stress

And you might be too

Lucy Squire

Aug 05, 2024

Have you heard of the stress curve?

It's the idea that our productivity increases as we get more stressed, up until a peak point…

When our productivity then decreases as the stress continues to increase.

It means that too little stress in our lives, and we feel bored and we don't achieve much.

Too much stress, and we burnout.

But get just the right amount… and DAMN you're a productive machine.

You get sh$t done.

And if you're like me, it feels good. You want more.

You get to the end of the day tired, but fulfilled, hella proud of how much you've ticked off the to-do list.

But here's what happened after being a productive machine…

After all the work in creating the SOAR podcast, I was feeling FABULOUS.

And I *knew* I should take more breaks, have an evening off, do all the things I talk about in the podcast itself.

But because it felt good being so productive, I kept going.

I told myself it wasn’t “bad” stress, because I felt good.

I kept pushing myself to do more.

And I started slipping into the “zone of delusion”.

It's when you're feeling so good on the stress, that you think a bit more will help.

But actually, your productivity is taking a decline.

You're quite literally “delusional”.

And it is a fast and slippery slope from there to burnout.

So I wanted to share it with you this week, in case it's a little light bulb moment for you too.

Are you chasing that feel-good-super-productive-adrenaline-rush? Is that why you can't stop and slow down?

Are you telling yourself the stress is good for you?

And have you already slipped into the zone of delusion (or beyond) and you need to pull it back a bit?

Now I haven't quite got the hang of pulling back before I enter the zone of delusion, not every time anyway.

But I do have “safety nets”.

When I start experiencing the following, I know I’m feeling too much stress and that I’m no longer at peak productivity:

😵 I start having trouble sleeping because I can't shut my mind down

🤪 I try to multi-task rather than focusing on just one thing at a time

🥴 my brain starts to feel mushy and it's hard to concentrate

🙃 tasks start taking longer than normal, because I can't focus

😬 I can't make simple decisions

🤯 everything feels urgent and essential and needs to be done yesterday

😖 life feels FAST

😥 I feel emotion and want to cry (and sometimes do)

So what do I do about it?

Well it takes a lot of self-discipline to pull back once you’re at that stage, but it's what we talk about in the SOAR (Switch-Off And Relax) podcast.

You can listen here if you missed it.

I slow down.

I make myself take more breaks.

I do EFT (aka tapping) to develop more self-trust.

And I allow myself to feel discomfort at wanting to do more work.

And gradually, life feels easier again.

Learning to live mindfully is a lifelong skill.

I thought I had “managing stress” DOWN because I don't get super stressed that often anymore.

But I'm still learning.

And a big lesson for me this month is to keep applying the principles of mindfulness EVEN when the stress is feeling good.

To notice when I'm getting hooked on the “stress” and to stop chasing it.

And I'll be honest, I did know that already, I just forgot / didn't listen to my own advice 😂

Sometimes we have to fall over a few times (or a lot!) to learn our lesson.

If you want some accountability in your mindfulness journey, something to stop you getting too far down the stress curve, why not join MOMENTUM, my monthly mindful membership?

A new podcast every week, each with a comment thread to share what you'll do differently as a result.

Then at the end of the month, we'll check back in and see, with kindness, what you managed to achieve and how different life feels.

This month we’re looking at “enjoying work even when it's stressful (the bad kind)” and you can check out the first episode right here.

For more details, go here, or to join, become a paid subscriber.

That's it today folks

I hope it's given you a different perspective on stress.

And I'd love to hear in the comments, how do you know when you're in the zone of delusion? And does stress sometimes feel good for you too? How do you keep yourself in peak productivity, without pushing too hard?

Sending lots of love xx