As the principal futurist at Cheechable, I like to share my toolkit with other creators and problem-solvers. A lot of being in business is about stress mitigation and making decisions. Here are some simple tools to help get you out of the box and into some fun and fruitful experimentation.
IMMUNE BOOSTERS
Our food isn’t the only thing that nourishes us. We consume substances in the form of drugs/ medicine and environmental particulates and our body has to process all of it. We start with sight, smell, touch, and sound. Think about when pollen is in the air. Which sense does it trigger first? For me I usually sneeze and then see the pollen on the cars or floating in the air. I would say that even though the experience would seem to start with smell, it actually begins with touch. My body has sensitivities to certain pollens, when they touch my skin or I breathe them in, it causes an action and then a chain reaction across the sensory board. This is just one example of how we can learn how to “digest” our experiences in a more connected way.
Body scan meditations are useful for checking in with your body, internally and externally. When we don’t realize how much discomfort we are managing on a daily basis, we adapt to that pain. Adaptation can lead to overcompensation, which throws everything off balance.
Emotional marking and sensing help connect your logic mind with your emotional triggers. It helps you look at these mechanisms and learn how emotions can escalate in your experience. Start with joy and play with that. Then when you start to understand where those sensations are and how to read them, try to move into some more challenging territory like shame or fear. Be objective and allow yourself to surf the challenge until you get a better understanding of your emotional flow.
Feeling with all of your senses, much like body scanning, can help connect you with the way your body processes information. It is all information, data, that you get to decide what to do with. While it is easy to become overwhelmed with so much information coming at you, it is also manageable once you form a cognitive connection with sight, smell, taste, touch, sound, and sensing.
Massage, specifically lymphatic massage, will help connect your mind to your body and boost your immunity. There are three spots to hit when you are feeling like you are in a slump. The side of your neck between the back of your ear and down to your shoulder, Under your armpits, and down the sides of your torso. Massaging these areas will help distribute your lymphatic support and make you feel more energetic.
These can be applied to your relationships with people, objects, and environments. You can use this to explore the way your body processes energetic flow through your regular experiences. I have found it has helped navigate experiences that are undesirable in food/substance, societal norms, and developing a strong sense of self and purpose.
TREAT YOURSELF
Sometimes you want to celebrate a special occasion or just don’t feel like figuring something out at home. Since the pandemic onset, I have looked at experiences outside of my domicile differently. I tend to have more investment in what I spend my time on outside of my home and give it my full attention. I like it to be special because we are all deserving of this intention.
We had a fantastic cannabis dining experience with The Nomad Chef, Travis Petersen, who curated an infused prix fix menu. I had the vegetarian menu which was closely aligned with the omnivore counterpart. There is a misconception that cannabis consumers only want to buy the cheapest deals. The truth is, that is what the dispensaries offer as value, consumers are more dynamic than that. People are looking to invest in experiences and quality. Chef Travis definitely comes through.
See where the Nomadic Chef Travis will pop up next! the_nomadcook