The Adrenaline Trap
It was 2010, and after 5 winters in the mountains, I found myself standing at the top of a huge snowboard jump deep in the French Alps. This jump, to be exact:
It was 12 metres long and 3 metres high. The photo above is of my mate Nico. His spin was smooth and drawn out—just the right amount of power and grace to make it all seem so effortless.
I too was no stranger to hitting big jumps like this. Too familiar, perhaps. Because whilst my mind knew I could do this, my body was literally saying no.
Year upon year of relentless extreme sports was finally taking its toll. I was stiff as a board. The arches of my feet were now permanently raised and cramped, and my lower back had become permanently arched/extended (hyperlordosis). I couldn’t even lie, let alone sleep, on my back. Both my wrists ached, my shoulders crunched, and my neck hardly moved at all.
Even so, I pointed my board down the hill and went for it one more time.
Launching into the sky, I was the antithesis of power and grace. If you were there that day, you might have wondered what you were seeing: a mass of flailing limbs fumbling through the sky, clawing at the thin air around me, just to remain upright. Just to remain alive.
Thankfully, I managed to land safely. But something changed in me. I knew I couldn’t carry on like this.
Finding “The Long Game”
I needed a solution. For some reason, yoga showed up. The physicality, the breathwork, the awareness—it all added up. The knotted muscles started to smooth out, and I started to get my mobility back.
Along the way, I accidentally discovered that there was more to me than the activities I had come to identify myself with. Which was lucky, because I had to step back from them to heal.
15 years on, I fondly refer to this hobby of looking after my body and mind as The Long Game.
The Long Game has taught me how to keep doing the activities I love so they are supportive, rather than destructive. It’s taught me how to enjoy what I do more, and not get so caught up in performance and prowess. It is using the body and the mind creatively to bring balance, health, vitality, and inspiration into my life.
I set out with the simple intention of getting my body back. I had no idea that it would also allow me to discover more of who I really am.
What to do if you’re stuck in your head
One of the parts of my job that I love the most is guiding people to discover how they become more embodied and more present—more able to express themselves fully.
It’s not just neurodivergence that can lead to us getting stuck in our heads; modern culture is so frantic and fast-paced that it is happening naturally across the whole of society as well.
We retreat into our minds because it feels safe. But while the mind is a great tool for planning, it’s a terrible place to live. Living there disconnects us from reality and keeps us in a state of low-level stress.
So, how do we get out? The answer isn’t to force the mind to stop thinking. It is to tether it back to the body.
Here’s a great practice that might be useful for you.
A Practice to Try: The “Three Things” Reset
If you feel your mind racing or your body stiffening up, try this simple grounding practice. It uses your senses to bring your attention away from the images and stories in your head and to reconnect with this present moment.
1. See Three Things Look around your environment. Find three specific objects. Don’t analyze them; just notice them. Allow your eyes to soften and take in your peripheral vision. Example: The texture of the wall, the light on the floor, the shape of a tree.
2. Hear Three Things Shift your attention to your ears. Listen for sounds outside of your own head. Example: Birdsong, the hum of a computer, traffic in the distance, or the sound of your own breath.
3. Feel Three Things Bring your awareness to physical sensations. Not emotions, but tactile feelings. Example: The weight of your body on the chair, the feeling of fabric against your skin, or the temperature of the air.
Here’s a 6-minute guided audio with a little more information, too: 3 Things Exercise
Ready to discover how to get out of your thoughts and into the centre of your life?
Let’s talk…