“Stress happens when the mind resists what is.” — Dan Millman

“Stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there.’” — Eckhart Tolle

Root Cause: Having two conflicting internal desires at the same time, and you are confused which one to choose.

Examples

1. Career vs. Passion
   • Desire 1: You want a stable, well-paying job with benefits.
   • Desire 2: You want to pursue your passion (e.g., music, art, travel) full time.
   • Result: You feel stuck, unfulfilled at work, and anxious because you’re ignoring what lights you up — but afraid of the instability if you chase your passion.
2. Authenticity vs. Acceptance
   • Desire 1: You want to express your true self, thoughts, and beliefs.
   • Desire 2: You want to be liked, accepted, and avoid conflict.
   • Result: You bottle things up, second-guess yourself, and feel like you’re performing — which creates internal stress.
3. Change vs. Comfort
   • Desire 1: You want to grow, try something new, or break out of a rut.
   • Desire 2: You fear uncertainty and prefer to stay in your comfort zone.
   • Result: You feel stuck, restless, and anxious — wanting something different but afraid to take the leap.

Two Types of Stress

• 正壓力 = 優壓（Eustress）- 當壓力「稍微高於」我們的 適應能力
• 負壓力 = 劣壓（Distress）- 當壓力「遠高於」我們的 適應能力

The Yerkes-Dodson Law

EMDR 眼動身心重建法

TSST = Trier Social Stress Test

MBSR = Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

Stress Inoculation Therapy (SIT，壓力免疫治療), also known as Stress Inoculation Training (壓力免疫訓練), is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) that helps individuals develop skills to manage stress and anxiety.

Ask yourself: “Will this crisis really matter one year from now?”

The STOP Framework

• Stop
• Tache a breath
• Observe
• Proceed

The “Triple Welcoming”

1. Welcome the feeling.
2. Welcome any desire to fix, change, or control it.
3. Welcome the sense of “I” who feels it.

3Q Filters Test by Jon Acuff

If you want to curb stress, you need to curate your thoughts. When you identify a “broken soundtrack” (repetitive negative thought), you should run it through these three questions:

• Is it true?
  • If so, where’s the proof? ¹
• Is it helpful?
  • Does it push you forward or hold you back?
• Is it kind?
  • If you said it to a friend, would they still want to be your friend?

If they’re not accurate, not serving you and making you feel worse, discard them immediately.

How To Prevent Anxiety Attacks? Slowly Look Around You And find…

• 5 things you can see
• 4 things you can touch
• 3 things you can hear
• 2 things you can smell (or 2 smells you like)
• 1 emotion you feel

This is called “Grounding/Earthing.”

Jacobsen’s Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)

Stress and anxiety are a tax on extreme ambition.

Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action

Problem: Overthinking & Underacting

Stress and anxiety tend to be higher before you act.

They thrive in the space between thinking and doing. They feed on idleness.

Without action, all you can do is worry.

Action is the antidote.

When you take action, you starve them of the oxygen they need to survive. / Once you begin, fear shrinks as you start to influence the outcome.

The answers you seek are found in the simple actions you avoid.

Often, stress and anxiety come from the lack of a plan to bridge the gap between your present reality and future expectations, and are directly proportional to the amount of time you spend in the past or future.

• Solution: Create a plan that will guide your daily actions to close the gap.
• Once you have a plan, stress and anxiety melt away, because it just becomes a “game” of executing on a daily set of actions, which is entirely within your control.

壓力無可避免，也並非壞事。

人生的高峰往往也是在壓力的推動下才得以攀登。

真正的關鍵不是消除壓力，而是學會與之共處，懂得如何駕馭它。

當你感到生活困難重重、人生充滿困境時，請記得：飛機借逆風升空，風箏憑逆風飛揚。

Stress & The Glass of Water

The Sedona Method