Embodying mind-based and body-based skills to promote health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance requires habit formation. How do we do this, particularly during high demand situations?
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.
Throughout this article series, the necessary mind-based and body-based skills which emerge from the psychologically oriented and somatically based practices have been applied towards the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. In essence, in order to fully embody these skills within the framework, it is necessary that we develop and habituate the skills. This is simple in concept but definitely not easy in practice. This is particularly true during high stakes and high demand situations.
We are commonly exposed to the description of the mind-based skills within the psychological perspective. There are many excellent resources which describe the various skills as well as their characteristics and the rationale behind their implementation. Various practices to develop these skills are also discussed. One of the shortcomings of this perspective, in many instances, is that there is not sufficient guidance or recommendation for how best to continue with these practices when we are exposed to high demand and high consequence situations. While it is often feasible to employ these skills during times in which there is less pressure, it becomes much more challenging in response to higher demand scenarios.
This situation can be readily understood when we consider that when we are exposed to higher pressure situations we will often experience a shift in biological state towards activated, attacking, anxious, overwhelmed, or shutdown states. As has been discussed in past articles, when we shift into these states our cognitive capacities and executive functioning decrease. One of the common foundational elements underlying each of the mind-based skills is the necessity for application of cognitive function to implement these skills. This is particularly true when we are trying to employ new skills which have not yet become engrained.
Irrespective of whether we are considering the psychological skills of mindset, optimism, increasing confidence, self-talk, reframing, reconsidering or distancing ourselves from difficult emotions each rely on the ability to implement cognitive skills. Ultimately, each of these mind-based skills requires that we develop the ability to change the way we think or view various situations. This is particularly true when we are initially learning to develop these skills and implement them. For this reason, when we face high demand situations, it is often the case that we are unable to fully employ these skills on account of the biological state shifts that frequently accompany such scenarios. This is a natural occurrence due to the reduced cognitive capacity associated with these biological states.
Within the psychological oriented paradigm, there is often the recommendation that we practice utilizing these skills and then adopt them across all aspects of our life. This is an effective strategy when we are within anchored and grounded states, as we have full access to our cognitive skills and capacities. As discussed above, however, when we experience higher demand or higher consequence situations, it is often the case that we will experience biological state shifts such that our cognitive capacity decreases. This, in turn, will limit our ability to employ these mind-based skills. The psychologically based paradigm often does not provide guidance on how best to continue to develop these skills under these common scenarios. This is particularly the case in the pursuit of high performance where it is inevitable that we will experience higher demand situations on a relatively frequent basis.
As an example of this concept, it can be informative to consider specific mind-based skills. Commonly recommended psychological skills include implementing ideal mindsets, reframing, using self-talk to improve confidence, reframing, and creating distance from our feelings and emotions. Each of these important skills are necessary in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. A common element amongst each of these skills is that they each rely on cognitive capacity in order to fully implement. For example, if we are to reframe a situation or distance ourselves from emotions, we require the ability to consider alternate explanations. Similarly, if we are to improve and change our self-talk and orient towards a more optimistic perspective and increase our confidence it is necessary that we have the cognitive capacity to change what we are saying to ourselves.
As discussed above, when we are experiencing higher demand situations leading to shifts away from anchored and grounded states, we will simultaneously experience reduced cognitive capacity. This occurs subconsciously and instantaneously. We do not control this process. It is a natural human occurrence. Even amongst those individuals, such as best in the world athletes, who have highly developed mind-based skills, they are also susceptible to similar occurrences in high stress situations.
When we are anchored and grounded, we have sufficient cognitive capacity to implement the mind-based skills. It is for this reason that from these biological states it is ideal to develop our capacities to implement these skills. It is also the case, however, that when we shift out of these biological states, it can become much more difficult, if not impossible, to properly implement these mind-based skills. Given our expectation that these skills will be effective, this can lead to further cues towards shifts in biological state into activated, attacking, anxious, overwhelmed, and shutdown states. In fact, the repeated attempt to utilize these skills, which are not having the anticipated effect, can lead to us becoming stuck or locked in these states.
It is also important to consider that when we experience high demand situations, and our cognitive capacity decreases, we often will return to skills, strategies, and tactics which we have already habituated. These may have become engrained responses on account of deliberate practice, or more often may be unintentional and have occurred in our past. It is often the case, however, that the skills which are already habituated are not what we are ideally attempting to utilize within these situations. Often these are outdated responses, which are no longer of optimal benefit to us.
The above understanding demonstrates the importance of the framework provided by the Practices of the Healthcare Athlete. From this perspective, when we identify a shift in our biological state away from anchored and grounded states, we first utilize body-based skills to return to anchored and grounded states. We can then utilize mind-based skills as our cognitive capacities return to their normal level. This provides a strategy through which we can develop the ability to employ the mind-based skills in high demand and high consequence situations.
When we are considering developing and implementing the mind-based skills described above, it is therefore essential when we experience biological state shifts on account of higher demand situations that we first return to anchored and grounded states prior to attempting to utilize these skills. Through repetition over time, as we progressively increase our exposure to high demand situations, we will be better able to maintain a degree of anchored and grounded state, despite incrementally higher demand scenarios, and thereby continue to progressively implement the mind-based skills within our overall strategies and tactics. Over time, through the process of neuroplasticity, these new skills will become habituated and we will be able to use them to a higher level under progressively more challenging situations.
In order to fully optimize and pursue health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance it is necessary to follow the above framework so that we can habituate the necessary skills in order to implement them within progressively more demanding situations. In the pursuit of sustainable high performance, it is inevitable that we will experience scenarios which will cause shifts in our biological state away from anchored and grounded states. In order to optimally manage these situations and leverage our biology in the fashion we desire, we must practice our ability to implement the necessary skills under these conditions.
It is first necessary, for the reasons described above, to ensure that we have returned to anchored and grounded states prior to implementing mind-based skills. Once we have done so, our improved cognitive capacity will allow us to more effectively utilize these skills. As we continue to practice this ability over time, it will become easier to implement these skills within progressively more difficult scenarios on account of them becoming more habituated.
To learn more, including about polyvagal informed coaching for healthcare professionals and others in high demand domains, please visit www.darindavidson.com.
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.