So, what exactly happens in the body when we’re stressed? It all starts in a tiny almond-shaped part of the brain called the amygdala. It’s small but mighty and responsible for memory, decision-making, and your emotional responses (including fear, anxiety, and anger).

When you feel threatened, your amygdala acts as a General. It receives the signal and alerts the rest of your body on what to do by flooding it with hormones (cortisol and adrenaline) that tell it to prepare to take action .

And that’s when the physical discomfort of the threat comes: your breath gets short, your palms feel sweaty, you lose your peripheral vision, and so on. Our brain and body get stuck in a feedback loop of stress that either causes us to freeze up like a deer in headlights or to blurt out something nonsensical or foolish .

It’s important to note that this response was key to our survival back in the day and what helped us flee hungry predators. But when we experience these same symptoms now in the middle of a presentation in a conference room with nowhere to run, a different approach is necessary.

Fortunately, there are a few simple steps we can take to work through these feelings quickly at the moment to help us feel calmer and in control.

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3 Steps to Help You Find Calm

Next time you find yourself in a moment of panic, there are three simple steps you can take to keep your cool. Since we often need to be able to shift out of stress quickly, these steps don’t have to take minutes but can be done in seconds. And the more you practice going through them in high-pressure situations, the easier they’ll be to implement when you need them most.

1. Label the Emotion

To be able to calm yourself down (and remain calm), you need to interrupt the feedback loop of stress that’s running between your brain and your body. You can interrupt this loop by simply naming or labeling the emotion when you’re feeling it (i.e., “anxiety,” “fear,” etc.). Studies suggest that when we’re able to articulate what we’re feeling, we help minimize the physiological response in the body.

2. Slow Your Breathing

Now that you’ve interrupted the brain side of the loop, it’s time to shift the physical response. Begin to slow your breathing by gently making your exhales longer than your inhales. From there, you can work your way up to double the length of your exhale. For example, if your inhale lasts for a count of two, see if you can make your exhale last for a count of four. Longer exhales send a signal to our vagus nerve which tells our parasympathetic nervous system (“rest and digest”) to turn up and our sympathetic (“fight or flight”) to turn down.

3. Re-label (or re-frame) the Emotion

After stopping the feedback loop, it’s important to reframe the situation in your mind. This keeps you from falling back into the same anxious spiral. Revisit the original emotion and give it a new label that’s neutral or positive. For example, if you felt “anxiety” you might re-label that as “excitement.” And “fear” might become “anticipation”. In doing so, you can shift your feeling from being bad and disruptive to being helpful and supportive. If interrupting the feedback loop is like putting on a bandaid, re-labeling is like treating the original wound.

Baba Shiv, revered Professor of Marketing at Stanford Graduate School of Business, talks a lot about the importance of re-framing as a way to manage stress. He suggests taking "Why did this happen to me?" and replacing with "Why did this happen FOR me?" In other words, how can I use this experience as a way to carve a new neural pathway and strengthen my coping skills?

To recap the above steps: Label, Slow, Re-Label. This 3-step process can show us not only how to calm down but also serve as a reminder that a lot of what we fear is created in our minds and that our job is to re-frame and re-wire.

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Other Ways to Feel Calm Now

The 3-step approach can be most effective for those urgent moments when you have to react quickly. For the other times when you’re looking to do the more proactive work of tapping into your calm, there are a number of actions and mindsets you can try, including:

• Think of something you’re grateful for

Numerous studies show gratitude boosts positive emotion, lowers cortisol, and boosts mood.

• Think positively

How can you put a positive spin on your current situation? Respected Stanford GSB Professor Baba Shiv recommends "reframing" techniques. For example, when something unfortunately or stressful happens, think "why did this happen FOR me?" as opposed to "why did this happen TO me?" Each situation is a text that we can learn to work through and grow stronger everyday—even deeply traumatic events.

• Meditate

‍Studies show that by slowing your breath and quieting the mind, you lower your heart rate, stress levels, and anxiety. There are plenty of resources to deepen your meditation practice: be it apps, books, and internet guides. One simple daily habit that has proven very helpful to the Catbird team is a simple 10-minute, completely silent sitting session. Fix your inner gaze on your third eye chakra (the space in between your eyebrows) and envision a glowing blue-green triangle. Let your breath flow in and out naturally, filling up your belly first then lungs. Graciously allow thoughts to come and go and just observe them. Slowly, you will be able to increase your stamina to 15, 20, maybe even 30 minutes each day.

• Breathe

Start with a box breathing technique: Take a deep breath in, filling your belly, counting slowly to 6. Hold with full lungs for another count of 6. Slowly release the breath for 6 counts, then hold the breath out for the last 6. Repeat until your heart rate has slowed and you feel calm enough to move on with your day.

• Get perspective

When you can stand back and take a wider view of something, you might realize that your current feelings aren’t so bad or aren’t a big deal in the larger scheme of life. Thinking of those far less fortunate than you and empathizing with their suffering can be helpful.

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Remember, it takes at least 6 months for new habits to fully form, so stay the course and we're confident you'll slowly and steadily see the quality of your life improve.