The Importance of the Small Moments
The way in which we approach and manage our biology during the frequent, smaller moments in life builds an important foundation in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance.
For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CE/CME credits, see the instructions below. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CE/CME credits.
There is a common perspective that suggests how we do the small things in life is a strong influencing factor in how we do all things in life. A previous article discussed the potential impact of the small moments in life. This consideration included both positive and less ideal experiences which occur throughout all of our lives. The essence of that description was that by orienting towards acknowledging the small, positive occurrences throughout our daily lives, it is possible to increase ventral vagal activation. Conversely, if we over-emphasize the negative moments, we can inadvertently shift our biology towards sympathetic and dorsal vagal states.
This recognition of the power of the smaller moments to create cues of safety and connection leading to increased ventral vagal tone, as well as the converse potential to shift in sympathetic and dorsal vagal states through over-indexing on small negative or unpleasant cues is important. While each of these moments may not, in and of themselves, be significant, there can be a cumulative impact on account of their frequency throughout our daily lives.
In addition to the previously described importance of the smaller moments in life, there are two additional significant considerations when applied to the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. The first aspect is the potential for these smaller, frequent moments to lead to the development of habits related to how we manage the experiences we encounter throughout our lives. The second consideration is the impact of the biological shifts described above following exposure to these moments and their resulting impact on how we experience subsequent events.
Prior to further illustrating these two perspectives on the importance of the smaller moments in life, it is important to note additional aspects of these experiences. This article considers those situations and scenarios which are not of significant magnitude which would, of their own accord, be expected to lead to a substantial likelihood of biological shifts in state. This definition is, to a degree, intentionally open to interpretation because what may be a smaller moment for one individual may, in fact, be a significant experience for someone else or have greater significance at different times. This is the nature of being human. For this reason, these smaller moments are best considered on a case by case and individual specific basis.
It is also important to recognize that whether we neurocept a particular stimulus as being one of safety and connection or of uncertainty, risk, or threat is not dependent upon the magnitude of the event. Our neuroception can identify a particular situation as a cue of safety and connection even if it is best considered a smaller moment. Conversely, it is also the case that smaller moments can be neurocepted as cues of uncertainty, risk, and even threat. The relative magnitude of the experience is not a determining factor within the process of neurocpetion.
With these contextual considerations in place, we can return to the discussion regarding the capability of the smaller moments to influence our habits. In simplified terms, we can consider that the means in which we respond to a given situation is dependent upon the pathways in our nervous system which become activated in response to the scenario. The network or pathway which is strongest within our nervous system is typically the one, out of the options, which will be activated and lead to the observed response, particularly during higher demand situations. One of the most influential and determining features in the relative strength of these pathways is the frequency with which we have utilized that pathway previously. In essence, those pathways which have been most often employed in the past become strengthened, thereby increased the likelihood of their activation in the future.
The above scenario, as well as the ability of our nervous system to develop new pathways and relative strengths is the result of the process of neuroplasticity. This topic has been detailed previously. For the purposes of this discussion, it can be considered that the more often a given pathway is activated, the more it becomes strengthened and, as a result, the more likely it will be activated in the future. It is also possible, through intentional practice, to retrain our nervous system and develop new pathways in order to, effectively, change our typical responses. These changes in our nervous system occur as a result of neuroplasticity.
This understanding is foundational to the recognition of how the smaller moments can influence our habits. As these moments are frequent, the manner in which we respond to them can be experienced often throughout our daily lives. As a result, the pathways which are activated in response to these stimuli can become strengthened, thereby developing a patterned behavior, which is referred to as a habit. The process is so robust that the often recommended strategy for developing new habits is to build them into our routines and schedules using small and progressive increments. In addition, if we undertake this process in lower stakes, yet more frequent, situations we can more often practice the implementation of our desired responses under lower demand scenarios, thereby increasing the likelihood that the necessary pathways will become strengthened and established as habits. This provides the opportunity for these habits to be more readily employed in higher demand, higher stakes scenarios.
The other important consideration for this discussion is the ability of our responses to the smaller moments to influence our biological state, thereby impacting our neuroception in response to future stimuli. On account of the Polyvagal Theory principle of state as an intervening variable, we can recognize that our biological state at the time we encounter a given situation influences our neuroception such that the scenario is more likely to be considered a cue consistent with the existing biological state. For example, while in a ventral vagal stabilized state, it is more likely that an equivocal cue will be neurocepted as a cue of safety and connection.
The importance of this consideration lies in the ability to influence our neuroception, to a degree, through impacting our biological state in response to the smaller, frequent moments in our life. As has been described previously, we do not control neuroception. It is a process that lies beneath conscious awareness and occurs instantaneously. However, in accordance with the principle of biological state as an intervening variable, we can exert a measure of influence over neuroception by virtue of impacting our current biological state. Given the frequency of the smaller moments in life, there is a cumulative effect through which these situations can exert an influence on our biological state. Through this mechanism, it becomes possible to impact our neuroception in response to future situations on the basis of shifting our biological state.
How we respond to the situations we experience essentially leads to a training effect on our psychology and physiology. This is the result of the factors discussed above. Due to this, it becomes the case that we are continuously training our biology to respond and react in particular ways. If we choose to do so in a deliberate and intentional fashion, we can ensure alignment with our purpose and values, thereby promoting the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance.
On the other hand, if we choose to not pay attention to these processes, we leave the resulting habits and biological states to random chance and relinquish our ability to influence our biology in alignment with that which is of most importance to us. It is important to acknowledge that the so-called choice to not intentionally and deliberately attend to these processes can be either a conscious decision, which is likely less often the case, or can result on the basis of not recognizing and accepting the importance of choosing to do otherwise.
As can be appreciated from this discussion, the manner in which we approach and manage our biology in response to the smaller moments in life can have substantial and important impacts on our life. This can impact our pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. The result can significantly impact the quality and nature of our life and the experiences we have. For this reason, it becomes important to attend to and influence our biology in response to the smaller moments in life. To learn more, including about polyvagal informed coaching for healthcare professionals and others in high demand domains, visit www.darindavidson.com.
The CE experience for this Blog Post / Article is powered by CMEfy - click here to reflect and earn credits: https://earnc.me/zxLO0B
This experience is powered by CMEfy – an AI-powered platform that directs learners along a pathway to capture reflections at the point of inspiration, point of care. Clinicians may earn CME/CE credit via ReflectCE, the accredited activity portal. Learn more at about.cmefy.com/cme-info.