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Quick Palming

Rub the palms together until they are warm. Cup them lightly over closed eyes without pressing. Take three slow breaths. That is the whole protocol.

Warmth and total darkness signal the parasympathetic system to reduce arousal. The retina and surrounding muscles relax in dim conditions, and warmth from the hands further drops local muscle tension. The Bates method calls this “palming.” It works in 30 seconds because the eyes spend most of the day in light at desk distance, and any deviation from that is restorative.

  • Right after closing a chat tab full of error logs
  • Between two agent calls that need full attention
  • When the screen edges start to feel buzzy
  • Mid-afternoon, before fatigue compounds
DurationBreathsCommand
30s3flowe reset 30 --protocol quick_palming
60s6flowe reset 60 --protocol palming
90sPhasedflowe reset 90 --protocol progressive_palming

The 30-second version is the entry point. The 60s and 90s variants add layered relaxation on top.