How To Relax When You‘re Always On Edge

Strategies to overcome five of life’s most toxic feelings

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Have you ever felt on edge as though your adrenalin spigot were running like a broken fire hydrant?

For most of my life, I thought peace, tranquility, and serenity were terms invented by late-night infomercial scoundrels. Remember those life-changing DVDs that would bring you peace and happiness for only four payments of $29.99?

It took me many years to realize this constant state of tension wasn’t normal. The awareness came after I committed to a daily journaling practice; it enabled me to connect the dots between my experiences and subsequent emotions.

A pattern of five sensitivities emerged — triggers that created a feeling of constant tension.

• Sensitivity to stressful situations — manifesting as anxiety
• Worry — always fretting over worst-case scenarios
• Overwhelm — from too many obligations and responsibilities
• Runaway thoughts — blocks of time would pass where my mind raced from one thought to another
• Overstimulation — too much social interaction without a break

Avoiding the situations that triggered these feelings seemed like the ideal solution, but…