The Stress Reset

This is a simple and powerful way to dampen the effect of any stress trigger. It takes minutes and all you need is an internet connection and a pair of headphones or earbuds.

Imagine your stress response as a mental guard dog. It senses danger (quite often mistakenly) and starts doing the equivalent of barking, which is the negative thoughts, nagging anxiety and hyper alertness. 

What this exercise does is calm down that mental guard dog, like some genius animal whisperer.

I had a client once who was so anxious that she thought that every time she rode the subway, she thought was going to die. She used this Reset and reported to me a few weeks later that those fears had completely disappeared.

OK so let's get into it.

There are two elements to this exercise: 

#1 A theta tone to calm the mental guard dog

#2 Replacement statements for the negative thoughts that give expression to the stress

What Is A Theta Tone?

Our brain works on different modes. We talk about different types of brainwave. There are five:

Gamma - for concentration 

Beta - External awareness

Alpha - Relaxed and creative

Theta - Deeply relaxed

Delta - Asleep

This exercise leverages the power of the theta state to calm down your mental guard dog.

Our brainwave patterns are naturally theta every day (A) when we are waking up, and (B) when we are falling asleep. In this state, we are highly suggestible. If anyone has ever woken you up and said for example “Get up - you're late for work!” you don't question this.

The great news is that you can get yourself into a theta state anytime by playing the audio below. Play it very quietly through headphones or earbuds. On its own you will find it relaxing.

Now, here's the clever bit: you create statements to replace your negative thoughts and repeat them while listening to the theta audio. The tone acts like the dog whisperer patting the mental guard dog’s head, and the statement tells it what to focus on instead.

For example

You have an important meeting at work and are plagued with worry that you will need the toilet multiple times.

Theta statement: I choose for the meeting to go surprisingly well. 

Or 

I choose to need to go once only during the meeting.

OTHER EXAMPLES

The presentation will be fine

The presentation went surprisingly well.

Every time I go for a drink at ....................... I only need the toilet once.

I can't wait to cook a stir fry tonight.

Important: the instruction must be positive. Avoid negatives like I choose not to go to the toilet because the action is still an instruction about using the loo/bathroom. That guard dog is not a sophisticated thinker and does not really understand negatives!

A Demo of The Stress Reset

To Make The Most Out Of This Exercise

You can use this in reaction to the trigger, but I have seen most success when it is used first thing in the morning. You start training that dog that the reality you want is already true. At any time, I have a set of 4-6 statements and/or written visualisations that I repeat with the theta tone in my ears to start my day.

Want To Become A Roadtester?

At the time of writing (May 2025) The Gut Relief Project is in its infancy. I am looking for your feedback as someone living with gut-related problems. What is useful about this content? What else do you want?

I have got A LOT more to say on the topic of stress - going beyond the usual techniques everyone advises. I want to help you develop what I call stress resilience. Think of the pressure that is overwhelming your gut as a firehose in your face. I want it to be more like water off a duck's back. Imagine what that could do for your gut!

Let's help each other and collaborate.

Go to The Gut Relief Roadtesters page to find out about the next step.