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By Irene Lyon
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HOW TO

7 Steps
DE-STRESS
Welcome To A New, Stress-Free Day
What is YOUR favorite stress trigger?
We all have things that get to us, that bring our blood to boil, that
slow us down, that make us want to hide, that stress us out in
some way, large or small, every day.

Is it one (or all) of the following …

• Getting cut-off in traffic?

• Nagging worries about paying your bills?
• A fight with your kids or partner?

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• Project deadlines at work?

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• Old memories that keep triggering you?

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• Or, maybe it’s something else that’s very specific to you?

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Here’s something I want you to know right away:
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Our society today is not designed to support a low-stress life.

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In fact, our world rewards “success” which often translates into

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presenting a confident public face while tamping down stresses

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and fears, pushing through physical exhaustion to achieve, and

ignoring our body’s stress signals so we can keep “going” and
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“doing.”
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Sound familiar?

While it may help us succeed in the short-term, these habits over

the long-term ultimately will make us fail – in our health,
relationships, work-life, and frankly, in living the life that we
desire and deserve.

The stark truth is that stress can kill us. But it doesn’t have to.

So congratulations for valuing your health, and your life by taking

this first step with me!

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 2

You’re about to learn that when you deal with stress from the
root cause, you can experience profound improvement – not
only around stress, but in almost every area of your life: your
physical health, general well-being, the way you age, and living
every day with more energy, focus, presence, and peace of
mind.

Here’s another powerful reality:

You have the capacity to heal yourself; your system isn’t broken.
What you require is a new set of patterns to replace the old, toxic
programming that is no longer serving you.

This guide, How to De-Stress in 7 Steps, is the beginning of this

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game-changing process.

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So, let’s dive in….

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© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 3

 How stress and our survival instincts create
toxicity in the body.

Have you heard people talk about the “fight-flight-freeze”

response to stress?

The general concept is this: If you were chased by a tiger, your

survival responses would mobilize by sending a massive surge of
chemicals (namely cortisol and adrenaline) throughout your body
to protect you. The same survival protection can kick in when
You see, when you’re faced with typical daily stresses, whether or not they
we have stress in warrant such an extreme response.
our daily life and

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we don’t “let go”
We live in a society that triggers many fight-flight-freeze

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of, or “come
responses – perhaps not the daily threats to survival that our

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down” from this
early ancestors faced (like tigers or woolly mammoths), but

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stress at the
triggers that can have debilitating effects on our health over time.
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physiological
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level, we get
You see, when we have stress in our daily life (too much to do,
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stuck in those
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emotional expression, etc.) and we don’t “let go” of or “come

fight-flight-
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down” from this stress at the physiological level, we get stuck in

freeze responses.
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those fight-flight-freeze responses. When we don’t “come down”

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(I’ll explain more about this in the 7 steps), then somewhere in our
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physiology we’re still caught up, unconsciously, in a stress

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response that happened last week, or last year, or 40 years ago.

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And every day, new stress accumulates in your body, toxic and
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unreleased, building up, building up, building up.

Doesn’t sound healthy, does it?

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 4

 We need fight, flight and freeze to survive and
we need them to turn off to thrive.

If a vicious dog is chasing us, we do want the fight-flight-freeze

response to protect us. After the chase is over, our biology wants
us to ‘recover,’ to come down from the stress response, which
We need to learn
means to shake, tremble, cry a bit, feel our body sensations, and
how to stop and
then engage back into the external world with awareness to
re-boot in day-
bring the stress response completely down to zero, or baseline.
to-day life so that
stress doesn’t
The problem arises when we don’t shake, don’t tremble, don’t cry,
accumulate in
don’t express our anger, don’t feel the pain, grief, sadness and all
our body.
the other emotions associated with an overwhelming event - this
seriously screws us up. We need to learn how to stop and re-

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boot in our day-to-day life so that stress doesn’t accumulate in

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our body.

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Think about a cup filling up with water.
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If you keep adding water to the cup, it will overflow. It’s the same
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with your nervous system, which is responsible for managing

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those fight-flight-freeze responses. Keep adding stresses

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without fully releasing them, and sooner or later the system will
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be full and start to overflow in the form of symptoms: burnout,

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chronic pain, weakened immune system, digestive and sleep

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Keep adding troubles, fatigue, chronic tension, anxiety, depression, etc.

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stresses without
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fully releasing It comes down to this: burnout is caused by too much stress
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them, and sooner and by your survival instincts being trapped in your body.
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or later the
system will be You want the opposite of this overflowing cup.
full and start to When you properly digest and release stress responses that are
overflow in the stuck, your system doesn’t fill up with stress. You then get to
form of cultivate space in the system not only to release stored-up stress
symptoms. more easily, but also to have more energy for work, for play, for
your relationships and all that you love to do.

The coming out of that stress response can be controlled by your

higher brain. Your higher brain is the part of your brain that can
think and reason - it is pretty much what makes human beings
what we are. It’s what allows us to create and innovate, to love

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 5

 and learn, but it can also overpower your more primitive lower
brain centers that just want to act, react and protect your well-
being.

What if you learned how to take healthy control of your higher

brain, and become a better listener to your lower brain, also
sometimes called your “lizard brain”, so that you could
metabolize and release stress when it hits you, so it doesn’t
become toxic and debilitating?

This is the crux of my work, and the basis of this guide How to
De-Stress in 7 Steps.

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Healthy nervous system pathway wiring starts

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here.
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Remember how I said that you have the capacity to heal
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Your brain and

yourself? You’re about to learn the good news (and why I do the
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nervous system,
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when wired well,

work I do). Over many years of study and practice (and my own
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and in a very
healing process), I’ve discovered an essential, fundamental link to
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healthy way, do
stress, burnout, pain and disease that is being overlooked in
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know the
virtually all stress, wellness and self-help literature, as well as
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difference
most medical and alternative health practices. It’s the foundation
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between an
of my private practice and my signature online course - The NEW
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actual tiger
Inner Game: An 8-Week Nervous System Reboot. With it, people
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have experienced profound, life-changing improvements.

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chasing you,
versus a stressful
project deadline
The missing link is this: your brain and nervous system, when
that isn’t life-
wired well, and in a very healthy way, do know the difference
between an actual tiger chasing you, versus a stressful project
threatening.
deadline that isn’t life-threatening.

When you learn how to listen to your nervous system, and its
fight-flight-freeze responses, you will also learn how to release
stress immediately. When this happens you can take an active
role in changing your health, wellness and outlook at this
fundamental level.

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 6

 So where do you start?

There is no getting around the fact that releasing deeply held

stress, as well as rewiring your nervous system pathways to
better respond to new stress, takes time. It has taken years
(literally from birth) for stress to accumulate in your body, and for
the programming in your brain that doesn’t cue you to release
that stress to develop. Later, I’ll tell you about other ways we can
work together so that you can go deeper into this powerful work.

But beginning right now – today – you can start to release the
stress you come into contact with in day-to-day life.

It’s super
By using the 7 step process I’m about to share with you,

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important to be
implementing it daily and as needed, you’ll be able to fend off

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able to tune in to
new stress from getting trapped in your system.

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your body and its

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inner landscape
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You’ll begin to have the tools you need to approach your daily
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to know whether
situations with relaxed alertness, in a more calm and confident
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or not a survival
manner, and you’ll begin to see changes in your life in
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response that is
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unexpected and wonderful ways.

happening might
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not actually be
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necessary for the Here are the key concepts of the 7 steps:
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situation you’re
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in. • It’s super important to be able to tune into your body and its
inner landscape to know whether or not a survival response
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that is happening might not actually be necessary for the

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situation you’re in. Then your body can know what kind of
stress response is needed for that situation.

• Being present and quieting the mind are key. So often our
dis-ease is caused by our waiting for something awful to
happen, when in fact it never will. Rather than focus on the
‘what-ifs’ in your mind, focus on the here and now.

• It’s also key to allow yourself to go through the natural

biological process your body needs to experience, in
order to digest and release the stress, including the
emotions that may come up.

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 7

 For right now, you don’t have to know all the whys of how this
works. Go with your ‘gut’ as much as you’re able. Trust the
process. Even though it seems simple, it’s powerful! This will
become more evident, the more you practice. Over time, and
with a little more apprenticeship, what you’re about to learn can
become second nature.

VERY IMPORTANT TIP BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Please remember that for this to be effective, bringing yourself

INTO your body sensations is key - this isn’t just a reflection or
thought-based exercise. Your body is what initially feels the

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stress. What typically happens is your higher brain protects you

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It’s about feeling, from feeling uncomfortable sensations in your body, when in fact

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not thinking. the exact opposite is needed to get on the right pathway to
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releasing the stress. It’s about feeling, not thinking. The stress is
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initially picked up by the body (not the higher brain), so we need
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to go within the body to let it out. Make sense?

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OK. Let’s begin…

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The next time you’re in a stressful situation, or you feel you’re

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getting stressed-out, rather than ignoring it and pushing through

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the stress, give these 7 steps a try.

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For now, if you aren’t stressed-out, think of something that

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recently stressed you out. Go within to sense how your body and
mind might have responded to this stress and then follow the 7
steps. At the end, go back to the idea of this stressful event, and
then see what you notice in your body.

1. PAUSE

When you sense you’re a bit stressed-out or coming into a

stressful situation, STOP what you’re doing (if it’s safe to do
so).

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 8

 2. FEEL IT

Start noticing how stress enters your body. If you aren’t sure
what to pay attention to, that’s OK! Lean in and feel the
stress, whatever form it’s taking. One of the problems we
have is that we want to avoid, ignore or power through
stress. Well, as you now know, it’s still there and being held
in your body. So this is an important step to tuning into your
stress so you can respond to it and release it.

As simple as they seem, just doing Steps 1 and 2 - pausing

and feeling what’s going on INSIDE - can make a world of
difference for you!
Bring the body

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into this game What you might feel here are tensions in the physical body,

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and actually or some heated emotions such as sadness or anger in

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follow what it response to the stress. This is OK. This is actually really good.

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wants and you’ll When you tap into your body response, and all its shades of
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have the secret emotions (yes, even emotions like rage and disgust) and
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to coming out of sensations, you become aware of your stress response from
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your stress.
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a more nuanced and body-based point of view. Bring the

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body into this game and actually follow what it wants and
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you’ll have the secret to coming out of your stress.

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If tuning into your internal body state feels a little tricky and
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you can’t seem to access any specific sensations or

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emotions try noticing your connection with your immediate

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environment. Simply sense your physical body in relation to

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your surroundings. For example, if you’re sitting, just notice

the contact between your butt and the chair. If your back is
against a chair, sense the pressure and contact you make
with your back and the seat. There is no need to change how
you’re sitting, unless of course you sense the need to re-
adjust to make yourself more comfortable. Just notice. If
your feet are on the ground, simply pay attention to the
pressure of each foot. Same goes for it you’re standing.

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 9

 3. NOTICE ANY SENSATIONS IN YOUR BODY

Noticing and staying present with the often uncomfortable

sensations in our body is something we tend to avoid. Most
times we try to get rid of the stress by “taking a deep breath”
or by thinking about how awful it is and then staying in our
head. You need to get out of your mind and thoughts, and
into the body sensation that’s actually happening. Don’t
avoid or ignore what’s happening – stay with it.

Take a moment to actually sense the physicality of this

stress that’s happening to you and where it resides in your
body. People often depict this as an energy, heat, or
tightness in a certain body area. Common areas that people

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feel this are the belly, chest, throat and jaw. Often there is an

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increase in heart rate, or a shallowness of breath; whatever it

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is that you notice, pay attention to the physicality of it.

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4. BE SELF-AWARE
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Self-awareness is a largely lost skill in our world. Just notice

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Self-awareness
yourself and all that you did in Steps 1-3; it sounds really
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is a largely lost
simple but it can be challenging. Practicing helps it become
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skill in our world.

easier.
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As the experience begins to diminish, start to gently touch

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and squeeze body parts. Maybe rub your hands together as

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if you are washing them with warm soapy water. Look at

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your hands as you do this. Really see some details on your

skin, your nails, etc. Then do the same with your wrists,
elbows, knees and thighs. What this does is returns your
body back to you. You’re re-connecting and re-orienting to
your system that just went on major alert mode.

5. NOTICE YOUR BREATH

Don't change it, just notice what it’s doing as opposed to

breathing deeply. I know some experts will tell you to
breathe deeply to calm down, but you should NOT and

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 10

 here’s why: Taking in a deep breath actually increases your
heart rate and what you don’t want is to increase your
Taking in a deep arousal, right? Rather, just notice your breathing, and wait for
breath actually it to naturally come down. If anything, increase the length of
increases your your exhale breath. When we exhale, our heart rate
heart rate and decreases.
what you don’t
want is to 6. PAUSE AGAIN
increase your
arousal, right? More pausing, more self-awareness. Give yourself time to
allow the adrenaline level to come down. Imagine it coming
If anything, down while you pause. Don’t rush to the next errand or
increase the interaction. Adrenaline is our key stress-response chemical,

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length of your and even just having the intention of it lowering will make a

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exhale breath. difference. Seriously, it will!

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7. ENGAGE rae
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Open your eyes and see the world around you. Say HELLO
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to your plants and books, or whatever is in front of you.

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When you do this you’re activating a part of your nervous

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system that detects your current position in the environment.

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Basically, you’re seeing that you’re safe and that “no tiger is
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chasing you.” Again, it’s about being with what’s actually

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happening.
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Take notice of any more changes in your body, such as the

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belly softening, the jaw loosening, the hands relaxing.

Are there any tears? Think about what you do when you hold
back tears after an accident or emotional upset: The mouth
tightens, the throat constricts. You’re essentially holding in
those tears as well as the emotion, energy and stress of the
situation. If tears are coming, allow them to come. Cry if you
feel it. Don’t hold back tears.

Is there any energy or tension in the legs or arms that needs

releasing?

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 11

 Is there any tightness in the jaw?

Is there any anger or rage that’s surfacing?

The more you
Notice how you relate to the stress now. If there’s still some
can ‘break-up’
intense sensation in the body, go through the steps again. If
your day and
not, let it go.
time into these
little snippets of
orientation, the
more you’ll be
This 7-step exercise is of course helpful as soon as you detect
able to release
that you’re in a stressful situation.
the stress as it
enters so that it
It’s also a good way to take a break in the middle of a workday

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doesn’t become
and requires nothing special except the ability to pause and bring

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toxic.
your attention to your surroundings (and your body from a

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kinesthetic point of view). The more you can ‘break-up’ your day

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and time into these little snippets of orientation, the more you’ll
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be able to release the stress as it enters so that it doesn’t
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become toxic.
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Final Tips for Practicing

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How long should this take?

As your skills
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When you’re just learning this, you’ll want to take 5-10 minutes to
become more
practice. Everyone will be different based on their past
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honed, going
experiences of tuning in and sensing their body in this manner. As
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through this 7
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your skills become more honed, going through this 7 step

step process will
process will become natural and instinctive, and can be
become natural
completed in minutes, even seconds when you’re really tuned in.
and instinctive.
Eventually, you’ll not even need to refer to the “steps” per se,
rather just be able to zone in on the stress and dissolve it
instinctually.

How do I know if I’m doing this right?

There is no right or wrong.
Go easy on yourself, and remember that this kind of practice,
since it’s not your “norm,” may seem really odd, and that’s OK.
This is especially true if you’ve been storing up stress for a long

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 12

 time and you’re a master at keeping things bottled up inside. The
key is to be curious and know that your body wants to release
When sensations, stress - remember that in actuality, these 7 steps are just the first
emotions and step.
memories that
are unpleasant What if I start to feel uncomfortable stuff like body pain, intense
come into our emotion or difficult memories coming up?
awareness, we When sensations, emotions and memories that are unpleasant
want to, as much come into our awareness, we want to, as much as possible,
as possible, befriend them and invite them in. We don’t want to push them
befriend them away (like we might think) as this is most likely why they are there
and invite them - they never got a fair chance to be processed and tended to.
in. Rather than take deep breaths to soothe the unpleasant qualities

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(remember, this can actually suppress and drive the pain deeper

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into the nervous system), just breathe a natural breath. Stay

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present to the unpleasant qualities (notice I use the term

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“unpleasant quality,” not pain) and continue to follow the 7 steps.
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Pain is a trapped As I tell my clients, pain is a trapped sensation that simply wants
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sensation that to get out.

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simply wants to
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get out.
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This seems silly and too simple.

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Yes, you’re correct. It may seem too simple compared to other

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stress-management strategies that bring in mindfulness and

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breathing techniques. The truth is that this process IS very simple

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because our bodies are a part of nature, along with the natural
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world and its ecosystems, all designed to flow and work without
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any outside help. But we humans tend to make things more

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complicated than need be at times, and we easily stray from the

natural flow. So the 7 steps, as well as my deeper work with
clients, take the body and nervous system back to basics, so we
can tune into our natural state with ease and efficiency.

These 7 steps are a perfect starting point so you

can begin to tame your survival instincts and get
back into the game of life. But, without the toxic
stress.

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 13

 Jump into my starter course today:
21-Day Nervous System Tune-Up.
If you want to gear up your nervous system and steer away
from toxic stress before it hits, the next step is to register for
my 21-Day Nervous System Tune-Up. This course blends my
most important teachings and practical exercises. After
going through this training, a few of my clients have
reported feeling healthier, more aware, more in-tune with
their bodies and some have even brought up deep trauma
that they were able to finally see and begin healing. This
starter course will help you reboot and reset your most

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precious system, YOUR Nervous System.

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CLICK HERE TO SIGN-UP
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AND GET STARTED TODAY.
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So much health to you and all your loved ones,

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What past clients have to say about my work.

“What a lovely tool to have in my self-care tool bag!!

Irene's lessons seem to gently “tease” and move the energy that
is causing tension and pain in my body. I think everyone should
learn non-invasive/self-care techniques before any extreme
therapy.”

- Angela Lowrey, Back & Body Chiropractic, Bryant, Arkansas

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 14

"These exercises have left me so much more empowered to
make changes in my life and handle stress than years of
meditation. Irene has the unique gift to blend the science and the
practice that feeds your mind, body and spirit."

- Jo Ilfeld – Ph.D., Executive Leadership Coach, Berkeley,

California

“Thank you, Irene, for the opportunity to be guided more deeply

into a sense of presence that is the foundation to an internal
source of aliveness, joy, peace, strength and love! Your exercises
and tools really helped me to practice slowing down, being
embodied, being present to the moment and myself, and

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bringing a deep groundedness and sense of calm.”

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- Caralie Norman, Therapist & Somatic Experiencing Practitioner,

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“My work with Irene has started an endlessly fascinating process

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of transformation from the inside out and the outside in. My

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awareness of my body, of space, of gravity is constantly evolving

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as I find greater ease in movement and rest. I can’t wait to see

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what’s next.”
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- Thomas Saunders, Actor, North Vancouver, B.C.

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“I have done lots of other therapies including yoga, but this

material really gave me a new level of self awareness and body
awareness. I now sleep better, have less back pain and
headaches, understand how I hold stress in my body, and
practice tools that gently release tension throughout my day. It is
so worth it so invest in yourself and learn advanced self-care
skills.”

Shaina Loos, Massage Therapist & Yoga Instructor, Vancouver,

B.C.

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 15

Professional Biography

Irene Lyon, MSC., is a nervous system specialist and therapeutic

coach who has been studying all things “body and mind” since
1993. Since opening her private practice in Vancouver, British
Columbia in 2005, Irene has made huge strides in her mission to
help people release stress and trauma from their deepest human
system - their nervous system. She has helped many people
recover from debilitating and misunderstood conditions such as
PTSD, depression, anxiety, chronic fatigue, chronic pain and
much more.

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Irene graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sport science in

2000 and obtained her master's in research in the fields of
biomedical and health science in 2002. Shortly after this, a series
of debilitating knee injuries and surgeries turned Irene to
investigate alternative healing and wellness practices and she
hasn’t looked back since.

She is a certified and highly skilled practitioner of the Feldenkrais

method (based on the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais) and
Somatic Experiencing (a nervous-system based approach to
healing trauma founded by Dr. Peter Levine).

© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 16

Irene’s brand is her ethos and represents her desire to help the
planet, one nervous system at time, by educating, teaching and
helping people discover how they can become their own
medicine. She is an optimist and a realist, an introvert and an
extrovert, a creative science geek and a lover of the natural
world.

Contact Irene
Website: http://irenelyon.com/

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© 2015 Irene Lyon https://irenelyon.com 17