Cheatsheet: Stress Management, Meditation, and Mindfulness for a Changing World

By Better Wise

A one-page lookup for the whole course. Use it to recall key terms, choose the right practice, and spot when to reach out for support.

Note: This is educational material. It helps you notice patterns. It does not diagnose or treat any condition.

Module 1: Understanding Your Everyday Stress Response

1.1 The Four Everyday Stress Responses

Response	What it looks like	Body signals	Common everyday form
Fight	Push back, argue, confront, get sharp or irritable	Jaw tight, fists, heat, fast speech	Snapping at a message, over-defending a decision
Flight	Escape, avoid, leave, over-busy yourself	Restless legs, racing heart, urge to move	Canceling plans, scrolling to "get away"
Freeze	Go still, blank out, can't decide or speak	Shallow breath, numb, mind goes quiet	Staring at a screen, "I don't know"
Fawn	Please, appease, over-agree, smooth things over	Forced smile, shrinking posture, tension	Saying yes when you mean no, over-apologizing

Key points:

All four are normal, automatic, and not character flaws.
The same person can show different responses in different situations.
Responses are learned shortcuts, so they can be noticed and gently shifted.

flowchart LR
    Trigger["⚡<br/>Trigger"] --> Appraisal["🧠<br/>Appraisal<br/>(threat?)"]
    Appraisal --> Response{"⚙️<br/>Stress<br/>response"}
    Response --> Fight["🔥<br/>Fight"]
    Response --> Flight["🏃<br/>Flight"]
    Response --> Freeze["🧊<br/>Freeze"]
    Response --> Fawn["🤝<br/>Fawn"]

1.2 Common Triggers and Early Warning Signs

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