Carol is an artist & an award winning short filmmaker; OTHER (RIMA 2005) assisting communities in the UK & internationally, creating bespoke interpersonal & intrapersonal projects & experiences that explore & stimulate the many shapes of wellness, awareness, life solutions & reflection through creative mediums.
Every day that we are blessed with, we all embark on unique personal journeys regardless of what we may do throughout our days & nights. We are all riding the rollercoaster of life, which at times can feel like a series of contradictions: amazing yet complex, joyful & painful, ups & downs, challenges & activations, beauty & repugnance.
There are constant changes, which is the only constant. But sometimes, the unpredictable changes in events outside of our control can loom over us like stormy clouds & alter our experiences of daily life.
Binary bias, defined simplistically, refers to how we interpret the information we encounter & how we weigh the value of that information against our own personal moral compass, which consists of our beliefs & values.
I have the privilege of longevity to remember when computer science was first introduced to my educational curriculum at secondary school. We started off with binary calculations, learning how to combine a medley of zeros & ones to learn the foundations of binary coding. What I can remember quite vividly is that the information that was being taught around binary numbers & how these related to computer programming, meant absolutely nothing to me; it didn’t ring my bell of interest one iota. There were variations of 2 numbers alternating, which for me at that adolescent time of my life were just lessons being taught in a strange language!
Binary bias is a necessary foundation of the digital world, which has enabled us to connect globally, easier & faster than my old pen pal days, but binary bias is not as beneficial when it comes to how we receive, interpret & share information with each other as humans if we utilise the same format of them & us, yes or no, all or nothing, black & white. Life is so much more than dichotomous conclusions, a reality we illustrate daily when we rise. We may consider what we want or have access to eat, to wear, how or when or where we work, how we earn a living to sustain our lives & families. When we consider the global community, we are aware that some of us have more choices than others, but choices, no matter how elaborate or small, are a common denominator. Through our choices for ourselves, we demonstrate how we observe & interpret the information the world presents to us daily.
Visualise this
When we choose to stand at the periphery of our experiences, as if standing at the rivers edge or on a beach & cast our senses across the vast contrasts between land & sea or river or lake we are invited to consider previously unknown possibilities of different forms of life beneath the surface of the water.
This visualisation mirrors the potential possibilities that can exist within our experiences when we stand on the periphery rather than in the middle of our experiences.
Ultimately, choosing the periphery equates to adopting a safe distance to observe, reflect & choose how to proceed, choosing to stand at the edge of your experiences emotionally provides your mind with a nourishing pause within which to consider different perspectives of your experience.
It can be time-consuming but like eating a favourite meal, worth it when you take the time to savour the flavours & textures of what you are tasting! In adopting this methodology to take time to consider the complexities of events taking place outside of our control, we are allowing ourselves space to learn how to adjust the weight of what may present as a ‘them & us’ situation into a more manageable perspective & thus a more manageable experience.
Standing on the edge (periphery) of stress
If we don’t know & define ourselves, how can we stay connected to ourselves when stressed?
One: Invest in your breathe. Yes we all breathe daily but intentional breathing focuses on the reciprocal relationship between breathing & emotions. Utilising the rhythm of inhale for 4, hold breathe for 7, exhale slowly through the mouth for 8 can significantly impact your mood & as I always tell my clients ‘ allows us to communicate at a cellular level to our nervous system that we are safe’. It reduces our heart rate & stress hormones, which activates a more relaxed phase of our blood pressure & psychological symptoms of distress.
Two: Time to become a detective & observe what actually activates your stress. Stress is a part of human life, we need the stress hormones adrenaline, cortisol & norepinephrine to fire up at specific moments of stress to carry us through sudden situations. Nonetheless, excessive stress or chronic stress indicates that these hormones are switched on continually, which is not healthy for us physiologically.
To become a stress detective, add symbols or words to your calendar to illustrate what times, days & activities activate stress for you & add a scale from 0 (no stress) to 10 (extreme stress). When you review a week's worth of notes on your calendar, you can start to identify what are the edges of those stressful experiences for you.
Three: Explore alternatives that alleviate your stress; intentional breathing, visualisation, meditation, yoga, pilates, walking, cycling, running, swimming, creativity, listening to music, dancing, singing, socialising, therapy.
We all deserve to live a fulfilling life, but some of us need to devote time to discover what they may look like for us, away from suggestions from social media, TV, colleagues, family & friends, but authentically from the patterns of our emotions that we experience. Once we have a better understanding of how our stress is activated we can position ourselves on the periphery of experiences which will assist us navigate relationships & the information we encounter.
Four: Willingness to let go of old behaviours & relationships to embrace the authenticity of yourself. Not everyone will understand & support you in developing the best version of yourself that aims to live a stress manageable & nonbinary bias lifestyle, but the aim is to seek peace & satisfaction in your efforts to look after yourself with compassion. When we become open to the complexities of our experiences from a self-compassionate & non judgemental perspective; on the periphery of our experiences, we can enter an awesome journey of discovery that is inclusive of multiple cultures, geography, history & traditions
Carol A Cumberbatch, Creative Life Solutions Consultant
Carol is an artist & an award winning short filmmaker; OTHER (RIMA 2005) assisting communities in the UK & internationally, creating bespoke interpersonal & intrapersonal projects & experiences that explore & stimulate the many shapes of wellness, awareness, life solutions & reflection through creative mediums.
A self confessed social media hermit, Carol is passionate about the natural learning environment, with an innate apetite for personal development, which she has enjoyed cultivating over many years after being deemed not equipped for higher learning as a young person.
Regardless of the pessimism of this early narrative, Carol has consistently created her path, resulting in decades of experience designing & facilitating innovative holistic journeys (parallel to post graduate studies) for individuals & groups in education, community settings, NHS, Creative Industries, alongside private practice as a Dramatherapist, Creative Clinical Supervisor, Cultural & Diversity Consultant & University Associate Lecturer.
Supporting others to discover their unique path to improved experiences amidst complex journeys.
Carol self-published a book of her art & poetry, called Gezellig Heart, in 2023.
References:
B. Grace Bullock, Mindfulness Relationships, Seven Skills for Success, 2016.
