CALM
How to feel calm
A shift from anxiety to calm will guide you back to the present to experience what really matters.
Superpowers used: creativity, introspection, dance
Other superpowers may be used as well. View all powers to shift states here.
How to Shift from Anxious to Calm
Anxiety can be represented as Uncertainty X Powerlessness.
Or as Anticipation + Fear.
Either way, it's a result of living in the future, not the present.
Humans are really good at fear. As our greatest survival mechanism, it's been around for millions of years.
Protecting us from predators, other tribes, and the inconsistency of weather, we became skilled in preparing for the worst.
This was critical to stay alive because there were a lot of threats. For our genes to be passed down, we had to be ready for anything.
We're current living in the safest time in history. Chances are if you're reading this, the odds of imminent danger or death is very low.
That doesn't mean our fear simply goes away –we're hard-wired for it. Even if we're safe, it's still going to present itself in one way or another.
Welcome to Anxiety
Fear drives us to worry about the uncertainty of the future.
And its survival mechanism is so strong, even when we know we're 'safe,' we still find ourselves in a deep state of anxiety over something as harmless as public speaking.
When fear isn't dealt with, we become anxious.
When it is dealt with, we feel calm.
Many people in the modern world are constantly living from a place of anxiety – even when they're perfectly safe.
It's not that danger is lurking in the corner. Rather, stimulation is smothering us in every corner.
From work, to old high school friends, everyone has the ability to contact us 24/7 in a variety of different ways.
The dings and notifications, the email, the likes, followers, algorithms, and open tabs – it's incessant.
Overwhelmed, it's no wonder our body switches into a state of anxiety. Overwhelm is a threat.
Not to mention advertisers exploiting our personal information to influence our behavior with personal data convincing us we're not good enough.
Shifting to Calm
It's not all doom and gloom.
You're a conscious being. That means you can have dominion over your state of consciousness. And your behavior.
You must exercise it, though, which can be difficult when we're under feelings of stress.
Why? Because the ancient survival mechanism of fear wants to take over and get in the driver's seat. Remember, it's been around a lot longer than our sense of consciousness so it's more powerful and prevalent within us.
The first thing to do is recognize you're in a state of fear or anxiety. Name it.
"Right now I'm experiencing anxiety because I fear what might happen in the future."
This sentence may look different for you, but it's vital you name it. Then it can't overtake you without your permission.
Then you can choose to do something about it. Here's how you can shift states from anxiety to calm using superpowers innate within you.