what does Taylor Swift have to do with stress?

(the science of shaking it off)

And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate / Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. ~ Taylor Swift

The transition from country singer to pop icon happened in just one single.

After decades of media scrutiny, misogynistic jokes about her lifestyle and the overall dehumanising effect of fame, the song debuted at Number 1 on the US Billboard 100 Charts. And remained there for weeks.

It was Taylor Swift’s iconic song, Shake It Off.

And how she would intentionally shake off all the negativity she had received.

But this isn’t a story about Taylor Swift. It’s about the science of ‘shaking it off’.

In the book, Burnout, authors Amelia and Emily Nagoski talk about how to complete the biological stress cycle.

When stress arises, the sympathetic nervous system activates. That’s the fight/flight/fawn/freeze response.

Once the danger has passed, the parasympathetic nervous system kicks in. That’s the rest & digest system.

But what if you have trouble switching off the danger feels? What if you’ve been living with chronic stress or trauma? (hint: that’s almost everyone at this point)

How do you reset your nervous system so that you don’t get stuck in stress?

You shake it off.

Yep - physically shake it off.

Because the movement of your body signals to your brain the danger is over.

Obviously, there is a lot more to the science of stress recovery. You also need rest, connection, a safe environment and secure relationships.

But it has been surprising to me how effective even just a little movement can be.

Case in point:

Last year I had an MRI to check if my chronic migraines were caused by something serious in my brain. Thankfully the MRI was clear.

But for this claustrophobic woman, the test was 10 minutes of pure stress.

I practised a lot of deep breathing and calming thoughts. And once it was all over, I was a bundle of nerves. Or so I thought.

Because when I got up from the machine, I was shaking uncontrollably. I thought this meant I was still anxious.

But actually, my body was going through a deeply natural process of letting go of stress.

By the time I got back to my car, I was fine. I was no longer shaking and had returned to calm.

Turns out, your body can be a portal back to calm steadfastness... when you shake it off.