I've done a lot work on myself in the last few years. My anger issues and stress were a big one to overcome. Lately I've fallen into a situation at work that has been causing quite a bit of stress. A few times I felt like I was going to explode from anger. My usual remedy for this has not been working. When I sense the trigger of negative emotion I try to remove myself from the situation and/or focus inward and force smiling. There's been a lot of research in how simply smiling releases endorphins and can help calm you down.

Sometimes it's more complicated/difficult to achieve happiness through smiling, or your so upset that you "want" to be upset. Negative emotions can sometimes tend to have addictive qualities to them. This morning was especially difficult for me and I accidentally stumbled upon an idea, that I'm sure others know of but I was unaware. Terrence McKenna spoke of singing or humming a sing while having a bad trip to help you get back on track and enjoy yourself.

I found this also is helping me while stressed out. It actually works much better than the previous two things above tht I normally do. So give it a try if you haven't already. Something irritating you or is someone pissing you off. Walk away and start singing. Either outloud or in your head. It worked really well just now.

Have you tried this before?

Definitely.

In spanish, we have this saying - "Quien canta, su mal espanta" > he who sings, shoos his ills/problems away.

And it sure works much better if you sing out loud

That's beautiful vodsel

this definetly works anarchy , i've tried this aswell many a times , it can also bring up laughter on its own after a couple of moments of singing ,

especially if one is singing a funny song

another technique is to remember something funny all the time and bring it up at stressful times

Was thinking about it, and it's a lot like how in hyperspace it's common advice to not give negative entities your attention.

"Where attention flows, energy goes"

Attempting to step back briefly in what ever situation, and seeing how silly it is to get worked up typically works for me. It's all about consciously catching your thought-stream before it spirals out of control into negative territory. After catching yourself right before it goes south, just LET GO. Just like in hyperspace. Just LET GO. Just realize that no matter what, it won't be conducive to the situation nor your well-being and that over time, that negative thought-stream, will most certainly, float on by, back into the ether, just like every other thought and emotion in your mind. All is transient, so why let it get out of control?

Doing this exercise takes time and repetition. As with everything in life, repetition will engrave this into your being. A pattern will form when dealing with things like this, as there is a pattern for everything in life. The old phrase "practice makes perfect" rings true.

By the way, im a terrible singer

much love,
tat

I'm not much of a singer (pretty self-conscious about my voice), but whenever I go through periods of stress or anxiety, I like to put in music and dance for a bit. I'll grab the most driving, repetitive, 128bpm 4x4 electronic music I can find on my iPod and just groove out for a while.

It's a great way to let of steam, get blood flowing and there's something about dancing to dance music that just makes me happy.

Blessings
~ND

Glad you are understanding how something so simple can relieve yourself of illments. I have done similar things to calm myself in situations.

The key is not to train your human mind to not have the situations in the first place but know how to deal with them when they do arise.

:]

I usually hum this when I feel like I'm about to rip someone's head off, at work or otherwise:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkhTA6MQ3BQ

I don't know why, but usually when I start humming it, everyone around me starts to as well, and it turns into a jolly old time

Pretty applicable for most Beatles songs, though!

I believe that to be very true about singing. What I do is play on my didgeridoo. That also helps a lot when I'm stressed or tired. It can completely shift my mood and boost my energy.

I think it has to do with breathing a lot, and that's exactly what you do when singing as well. Your breathing out becomes more intense releasing the stress or anger. At least that's what it feels like to me when playing on my didg.