#overstimulation

#overstimulation

Picture this: you're having a peaceful evening with your cat curled up on your lap. You're gently stroking their soft fur, maybe watching TV or scrolling through your phone, when suddenly-out of nowhere-teeth sink into your hand. Your sweet companion has transformed into a tiny tiger, leaving you confused and maybe a little hurt.

Picture this: Your new puppy is pressed against the corner of the room, trembling slightly as you call their name. Their tail, which should be wagging with excitement, is tucked firmly between their legs. You've done everything the books told you, bought all the right toys, followed the feeding schedule perfectly, yet somehow your furry friend seems more nervous with each passing day.

A few weeks ago, a viral tweet perfectly captured a phenomenon familiar to many of us. The post ― a response to someone's question "what's your biggest ick about yourself?" ― read simply: "i can be really mean when i'm overstimulated." Judging by the retweets, it seems 55,000 people could relate. If you've ever snapped at your partner after a bad day, or had an outburst during a frustrating call with a customer service agent, you may understand the meaning behind the tweet. We're not exactly at our best in moments like these, but they're part of the human response to being overstimulated.

When I am with said people, we are both fully enjoying ourselves, but it is impossible for me to climax. At first, I thought maybe it was just nerves or my partner didn't have a technique that matched my desires (not a problem, that's where communication comes in!), but even after we part, neither my husband nor I can get me to climax.

When we're in a heightened state of stress, the body keeps producing stress hormones even when we're physically tired. It's like having your foot on the gas and the brakes at the same time. When people are constantly 'on' - managing work, kids, notifications, endless to-dos - their nervous system doesn't get enough downtime. This makes it hard to switch from go mode into rest mode, which is essential for sleep.

The damage caused by "outside school" isn't something that they can simply push through and overcome. This is when homeschooling-and in particular unschooling-can come in. What Is Unschooling? As Brooklyn-based writer and educator Ruben Brosbe writes in U.S. News & World Report, unschooling is "an educational philosophy that relies on a child's innate curiosity and desires to learn. In families that practice unschooling, students do not attend school and do not follow any set homeschool curriculum.''

I often wake up before dawn, ahead of my wife and kids, so that I can enjoy a little solitary time. I creep downstairs to the silent kitchen, drink a glass of water, and put in my AirPods. Then I choose some music, set up the coffee maker, and sit and listen while the coffee brews. It's in this liminal state that my encounter with the algorithm begins. Groggily, I'll scroll through some dad content on Reddit, or watch photography videos on YouTube.

When you're stressed out, the prefrontal cortex goes from reflective and rational to reactive... your brain's not thinking about maintaining relationships or effectively solving problems.