You might not even realize it’s happening, but it's everywhere. You read another headline about AI. Another post about jobs changing. Another video about how everything is about to move faster. What do you notice happening in your body? If you don't notice anyting then I highly suggest you start paying attention. You probably notice that your body tightens. jaw clenches, shoulders creep up, or breathing gets a little shorter.
You’re not panicking. You’re not spiraling. You’re just… tense.
Most people think they’re reacting to information. But your body doesn’t experience it as information. It experiences it as uncertainty and uncertainty is unpredictable. This is a problem because our brain is a prediction making machine. It takes our past experiences with our sensory present to make a prediction about the future. And when we can't do that your nervous system braces.
When your mind can't predict whats coming next it shifts into alert mode. Not full-blown fear. Just enough to stay ready. Ready for what? It doesn’t even know. Just ready. Just always on and you can feel that, don't you?
AI isn’t just a new tool. It represents speed. Change. Unknown outcomes. And the human nervous system does not love unknown outcomes.
Even if you’re excited about it. Even if you think it’s fascinating. Even if you’re not directly affected. Your body still registers, “Things are shifting. ”That low hum of tension might show up as:
- Trouble focusing
- Feeling more irritable than usual
- Mental fatigue by mid-afternoon
- Scrolling longer but feeling worse
- Lying in bed wired but tired
This is your body's attempt at trying to get ahead of something it can’t predict. And staying slightly braced all day is exhausting. Now, I'm not saying you need to ignore headlines. You don’t need to pretend change isn’t happening, but you do need to teach your body that right now, in this moment, you’re okay.
That’s the part most people skip. We have to learn to down-regulate. We can't think our way out of stress.
Try this the next time you feel that subtle tension while reading or listening to another future-of-work conversation:
- Put your feet flat on the ground.
- Look around and name five things you can see.
- Take one slow breath in.
- Let it out longer than you took it in.
- Let your shoulders drop.
And begin to become aware of your surroundings bringing your mind back into your body. Your body responds to safety cues more than logic. You can’t control the pace of technology. You can control whether your system stays on edge all day because of it.
Small resets matter. It's better to start now then to end up in a health crisis 1 year from now. Your body wasn’t designed to process nonstop uncertainty without a break. If you’ve been feeling more tense lately and can’t quite explain why, this might be part of it.
Give yourself two minutes. Let your system settle.Then decide what you actually think about the future. Calm comes before clarity
And if you need help doing that, open SoFree and run a quick session. Sometimes all your body needs is a reminder that right now, you’re safe.