Accessing Your Flow State for Health and Well-Being
“Flow is an optimal state in which you feel totally engaged in an activity...In a state of flow, you’re neither bored nor anxious, and you don’t question your own adequacy. Hours pass without your noticing.”
-Susan Cain
Between adjusting to a global pandemic that’s included a range of personal lifestyle changes - social distancing to lock downs, working from home or not working at all, spending more time with loved ones or missing them from afar, setting up a home-school program for your kids, becoming pregnant or having babies with less community support or perhaps putting your wedding or family plan on hold, having less alone time or having a world of time in isolation, financial strain, the list goes on…we have had quite the season.
I’ve heard some clients, colleagues, friends, and family speak of this time as one of huge awakening - an opportunity to reassess our values and prioritize what’s truly important. While others see it as a time of true crisis in all senses of the word. And yet through the trials and tribulations, people and society is shifting, and not all in negative ways. I’ve heard clients and friends speak to things like: self-care, developing a spiritual practice, reconnecting with family, practicing compassion, deconstructing racism, doing meaningful work, and stability to name a few core values newly incorporated during this time. This doesn’t take away from the hardship, anxiety, and collective trauma we have all faced.
To integrate this change more fully, it can be helpful to go beyond simply talking about it. By tapping into flow state, we enter into a state of mind that is free of self-judgement, critique, or perfectionism and we are able to make something that often, and surprisingly so, more accurately encapsulates our experience. Coined “flow” in 1975 by Hungarian-American psychologist, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, after his experience of suffering as a child in Europe amidst World War II, described “flow” as:
“being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved...” (for more on flow states, watch his Ted Talk here).
Getting into a flow state can not only help us access deeper parts of ourselves, but can greatly help us in relief from suffering from anxiety and depression, fear, grief, trauma, change, transitions, and more. If you are struggling more intensely with these issues, it may be wise to seek further support from your community or a professional who can guide you further toward relief. Read more about the work I do around anxiety, trauma, and relationships.
Optimal Conditions for Entering Flow State:
Challenge-Skills Balance: the task at hand is not too demanding nor too easy. There is a sense of competence, enthusiasm, and enjoyment in the task.
Clear Goals and Clear Feedback: the goal is defined as finishing the task and the feedback comes from the activity itself, not from another external source.
Loss of Self-Consciousness: we are so involved in the activity at hand, critiquing is non-existent.
Transformation of Time: in becoming so absorbed in the moment, we lose concepts of time.
Autotelic Experience: the endeavor is carried out for it’s own sake, with no expectation of a future benefit.
“Surrender is a state of living in the flow, trusting what is, and being open to serendipity and surprises.”
-Judith Orloff
Prompts for Accessing Flow State:
In reflecting back on the season, I’ve considered a few prompts to help guide me and my clients into fuller integration through accessing flow state, whether that be through journaling, speaking aloud, collaging, drawing, painting, music, hiking, or some other form of movement, choose the medium that you’re naturally drawn to most, that will propel you into your unique flow state. Don’t second guess or edit, just do. Sometimes the meaning of it all comes later. Here are some prompts to get you started before jumping into whatever activity feels most alive for you.
What did you learn over this past season? This includes what you learned about yourself, what you learned about others, and what you learned about humanity as a whole. Apply it where you see fit.
What did you lose over this past season? What did you gain?
When you reflect on this time, what sensations do you notice in your body? What emotions arise?
What imagery shows up for you when you look back and when you look forward? Is there a song or sound that arises for you?
What changes do you notice? Changes within yourself, in your home, in your schedule, in society, in a loved one. Apply it anywhere.
What are you grateful for from this past season? What are you not grateful for or what do you want to throw away? This could be an experience shared, a letter received, something new, something old, etc.
What interaction(s) sticks out to you most from this past season?
How is your relationship with yourself different than it was before? How is your relationship with others different than it was before? Others can include partners, family, friends, animals, objects, places, etc.
How have your values changed? Which ones still remain important?
What do you hope or dream for still?
References:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). The Psychology of Optimal Experience. New York: Harper & Row Publishers.
Houston, Elaine. (2020). 11 Activities and Exercises to Induce a Flow State. PositivePsychology.com. https://positivepsychology.com/flow-activities/
Nakamura, J. & Csikszentmihályi, M. (2001). “Flow Theory and Research”. In Snyder, C. R. & Lopez, S. J. Handbook of Positive Psychology. Oxford University Press. 195–206.
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If you are needing support, feel free to reach out. Dana Andrews with True Nature Psychotherapy offers anxiety therapy, PTSD and trauma therapy, and couples therapy online anywhere in California. Reach out today with any questions or to schedule a free and confidential phone consultation.