Hello amazing Unstoppables Family,

Here is the latest dose of what I’m doing, what I’ve learnt and things to explore. I hope you enjoy and please feel free to share with family and friends.

Have a wonderful week ahead! Much love, stay strong and #beunstoppable

Sandy xxx

PS – And if you haven’t done so already, don’t forgot to check out my favourite tried and tested health and wellness products – you can find them under my Must Haves

1 THING I’M DOING

USING TECHNOLOGY ALTERNATIVES
I started my own business supporting organic, ethical and eco friendly brands as I was never a fan of corporate giants. I found their priority of, money and profits above all else, off putting, their greed, distasteful, and just their blatant disregard for anyone or anything in their way, just ugly, to put it nicely.

As such, I’ve always supported smaller brands and businesses where I can, from my local organic store (instead of Coles & Woolies) to the local bookshop (instead of Amazon). So, when it comes to something like tech services, my values are still the same.

If I can avoid Google and their evil tracking oligarch ways, I will. Here are some great alternatives I’ve found along my travels and an image showing how many trackers and ads Brave has blocked on my phone alone. The number is 171,000! And I haven’t even been using it for that long.

Browser – Instead of Chrome, Firefox or Edge use Brave or DuckDuckGo
Search Engine – Instead of Google or Bing use Quant or DuckDuckGo
Email – Instead of Gmail or Outlook use Proton Mail

2 THINGS I’VE LEARNT

PANIC ATTACKS & THE PHYSIOLOGICAL SIGH
I have something to share that I’ve only shared with one other person in this world, so here goes. Prior to 2021, I would never have considered myself a candidate for panic attacks. I thought this was reserved for your more nervous type, worry warts or people that had other issues. That wasn’t me. Well, it seems anxiety and panic attacks can happen to anyone and mostly, when we least expect it. Here’s how one afternoon in early 2021 quickly went from playing a favourite board game with my two children, to standing on the front lawn, wondering if this was where and when it was all going to end. Clearly it didn’t, but gosh all mighty, it felt like it for a while. Here’s how it went.

I was quietly playing with my children. There was no sign of a raging tiger about to attack, or some major threat coming into the house, but I must have had a fleeting thought that sent my body into an adrenaline tizz. I suddenly found it a little hard to breathe. Then came a tightness in my throat and then thinking about it all, seemed to make matters worse. With my heart racing, I politely excused myself, told my children that “Mama isn’t feeling well” and went outside to find the oxygen that was suddenly lacking in the room. Standing out the front, feeling panic-y I wondered was something seriously wrong? Should I call an ambulance? Was I suddenly going to collapse? I decided to just focus on my breath, to calm myself down and in about 10 minutes, I was OK. I proceeded with my day, a little jittery, questioning, “what the hell just happened then?”.

Since that time, this type of anxiety and panic response has happened a few more times. Generally, and very oddly, in the most relaxing of times; walking the dog, at the hairdressers (that’s another story) and sitting at work. I can see it when it starts to happen now, and I know that I am in control. Everything is OK, there is no tiger on my heals, and if I use a few techniques, this uninvited and unwelcomed guest, will leave as quick as it came. Here’s how.

First, things first, some physiology. The system in our brain that controls our breathing is very unique, in that, it operates under both conscious and unconscious control. This gives us a blessing, and an opportunity to use our breathing to directly connect with our nervous system and to rapidly reduce stress and anxiety. There are many different breathing techniques that I’m sure can help but here’s one from both Ari Whitten and Andrew Huberman which I really like. It’s called the physiological sigh.

To use this technique, the trick is to take a double inhale through your nose. Take a really deep inhale and when you feel like your lungs are full, take a powerful quick little burst of additional air, like a quick snort. Now slowly release all the air in your lungs, through your mouth, in a long exhale. I like the idea of making an audible aaahhhh sound. Do this a few times and you’ll soon feel a lot calmer and hear the gentle lapping of waves on the beach. Well, maybe not, but I’m sure having a lovely visualisation of being somewhere calm and beautiful wouldn’t hurt.

This physiological sigh technique is super simple, effective and is said to be the single fastest way to lower anxiety in your brain. At the end of the day, that surge of adrenaline can happen anywhere and anytime. In a social setting, just before giving a presentation, walking into a new environment. Getting comfortable with certain levels of stress, and with having a spike of adrenaline in your body, and learning how to manage this, is key to becoming more mentally resilient and strong.

CAVEAT. Occasional attacks of anxiety or panic are very different to anxiety disorders which require professional help. Experiencing a sudden shortness of breath, in relation to perhaps a sudden surge of panic, is very different to something that could be a medical emergency. If you are experiencing shortness of breath, chest pain, tightening, or any concern please seek medical attention or call 000 immediately. A medical emergency or ongoing disorder needs urgent attention and priority. As I always say, health and family first.  

KIDS & ANXIETY
But what if your child suffers from anxiety or stress? Or has a panic attack? What can you do then? Depending on their age, I see no reason why you couldn’t get them to do the physiological sigh, but here’s another technique that I know can help.

If your child is suddenly feeling anxious, tear up a tissue and place the small pieces on a table. Ask your child to gently blow the tissue pieces, hard enough so the pieces move to the other side of the table, but not too hard, that they fly off and over the table. You can make this interactive by blowing the pieces back to them. Smile, stay calm and you’ll be teaching your child skills they can use for life.

PS – And if you don’t have a tissue handy, you can use anything. Think piece of paper, toilet paper, paper towel or even cotton balls could work.

3 THINGS TO EXPLORE

THREE OPTIONS WE ALWAYS HAVE IN LIFE
If life, you always have three options. To change things, accept things or leave things.

What you don’t want to do is to sit around, wishing you could change something, and not do anything about it. You don’t want to wish you would leave something, but not leave, and even worse, not accept it either.

It’s that conflict that drives us crazy and creates misery soup. If you want to change something, act. If you want to leave something, take some steps to do so, otherwise accept things as they are and move on.

JUST BE IT
If we want to be something, just start being that person. If you want to be fitter, when you have the option of stairs or an elevator, don’t think about it, just take the stairs. You’re fit right? If you need to go to the shops that are five minutes away, don’t deliberate, just walk there instead of taking the car. That’s what a fit person would do. Very soon, you will have become the very person you wanted to be, and somehow morphed into that vision.

Here are a few more ideas….

Want to be healthier, when shopping, just buy the things a healthy person would. Want to be an early bird, just set the alarm for 6am and get up. No if’s, but’s or maybe’s. Want to be more organised, when faced with a scenario, ask yourself, what would an organised person do in this instance? And just do that. 

BANKRUPT
Here’s a little quote from Naval Ravikant that I found quite thought provoking…

“It you eat, invest, and think according to what the “news” advocates, you’ll end up nutritionally, financially, and morally bankrupt”.