Welcome to Slowlutions™

The power of slowing down to enhance quality of life and business success.

Slowlutions™…it’s a funny word, isn’t it?
Don’t let funny fool you.
Slowlutions are powerful.
They can revitalize your personal and professional lives.

The simple practice of Slowlutions™ is perfect for you if:

• Your, or your family’s, enjoyment of life is being negatively affected by stress.
• You need to relax more to safeguard your health.
• Your work-life or business is depleted due to high levels of stress.
• You are approaching retirement and want to ease into a slower pace.

My name is Marian R. Place, LCSW, and I think you’ll find this website a wonderful introduction to Slowlutions™. I offer Slowlutions™ Consulting for individuals and businesses across the country, as well as being a psychotherapist in Durham, North Carolina. I’ll have much more on slowing down to reduce stress and revitalize in my forthcoming book The Little Book of Slowing Down.

Email me at placesense@yahoo.com if you would like to be contacted when the book comes out. (Please put "Slowing Down" in your email's subject line.)

Slowlutions™: Slowing Down to Reduce Stress and Revitalize

If you are like 47% of adult Americans, you feel you have too much stress in your life (2006 APA Survey). In other words, many of us feel more irritable, tired, nervous, or closer to tears than we would like. Little surprise, then, that 57% of respondents in a recent Pace of Life Survey* stated they wanted a slower pace of life. Slowing down reduces stress and allows us to make effective, creative decisions about renewing ourselves.

Slowlutions™  (slo´loo·shuns)
n. Activities (or non-activities) intentionally chosen to slow stress and restore vitality to our personal or work lives; require only focused attention for one minute or more. May be done anywhere; free of charge. Usually preceded by the question “What’s my Slowlution™?” Examples: walking on beach; shooting basketballs; rubbing a dog’s belly; taking three months’ leave; saying No.

Slowlutions™ help us remember to reduce stress when we need to. By learning to put our foot on the brake with a Slowlution™, we take stress’ foot off the accelerator, thus breaking the stress cycle. Slowlutions™ make revitalizing possible for even the busiest of parents or business people at any time because they are whatever you want them to be – from deep breathing for sixty seconds to sea-diving sixty feet below. You choose them, so you tailor them to your specific circumstance.

Integrating Slowlutions™ into your life, you’ll become finely attuned to your stress signs. The question “What’s my Slowlution™?” will help you remember to take a break. Answering the question, you’ll discover how easy – and revitalizing – it is to practice Slowlutions™ whenever you need to throughout the day. As a result, over time your outlook will improve, your health will benefit, and you’ll feel good that you have intentionally taken steps to reduce your stress level.

If you have a higher stress level than you (or, possibly, your doctor) would like, ask yourself these questions:

• “Do I have to get very stressed to even notice that I’m stressed?”
• “Do I consciously choose to slow down from stress on a regular basis?”
• “In the midst of a busy day, do I make a practice of pausing to restore
  my focus and energy?”

Your answers to these questions may be: “I really need to reduce stress but I don’t have the time.”…or…”I badly want to slow down, but I don’t know how.”

Slowlutions™ Show Us the “How.”