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The One Thing That Always Makes Me Feel Better
Getting into a flow state makes the rest of the world fall away
I don’t need to say yet again how the pandemic, quarantine, and social distancing are making us all feel a weird combination of stressed, anxious, bored, depressed, or any number of other confusing, uncomfortable emotions. When there’s nothing on the news (or social media) that isn’t about COVID, we’re hard-pressed to find an escape, an outlet that can release some of the mounting pressure.
That being said, over the past two months of quarantine, I’ve found one thing that consistently makes me feel better: getting into a flow state.
A mental flow state can improve happiness and productivity
Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, a positive psychologist and the author of Finding Flow, defines a flow state as an “optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best.” A person in a flow state is completely absorbed in an activity as time flies by, unnoticed. Flow states may also be characterized by unshakable focus, feelings of control and mastery, and forgetfulness of self (i.e. you’re no longer aware that that mosquito bite on your ankle is itchy), among other things.
A flow state is “an optimal state…
