🌊 River of Wellbeing

Navigate your river — between chaos and rigidity

👋 Welcome — here's how it works

  1. Watch your river — the canoe is you, floating in the middle of your River of Wellbeing.
  2. Select what's narrowing it ⬇️ — tired, stressed, hungry? Tap those buttons and watch the river respond.
  3. Select what's widening it ⬆️ — rested, hydrated, connected? Add those and feel the difference.
  4. When the river narrows, you'll be asked how you're feeling — then offered the right tools for you.
🏔 Bank of Chaos — Hyperarousal 🪨 Bank of Rigidity — Hypoarousal
🌊 Your river is flowing — your canoe is in the middle.
⬇️ Narrows the river — tap to add obstacles
⬆️ Widens the river — tap to add resources
✏️ Add your own

🛶 Imagine you're canoeing down a river…

This is your River of Wellbeing — always moving, always flowing. On one bank is chaos (hyperarousal — overwhelm, panic, flooding emotion). On the other is rigidity (hypoarousal — numbness, shutdown, disconnection). Your canoe is most at ease in the wide, open middle.

🏔 Bank of Chaos — Hyperarousal

When the river pushes you toward this bank, your nervous system is flooded. Panic, rage, racing thoughts, overwhelm. The current is too fast and you're being thrown around.

✅ The Middle — Window of Tolerance

Here the river flows freely. You can feel emotions without being swept away. You can think clearly, connect with others, and respond thoughtfully rather than react.

🪨 Bank of Rigidity — Hypoarousal

When the river runs shallow and slow, you drift toward this bank. Shutdown, numbness, fog, disconnection. The river has quietened to protect you — but you feel stuck and unable to move.

🌊 Obstacles in the river

Some people bounce between both banks, struggling to find the middle. Obstacles — stress, exhaustion, hunger, loneliness — narrow the river and make it harder to stay on course. The wider the river, the more space you have to navigate whatever comes your way.

💡 Widening the river

Your river can grow wider over time. Rest, food, water, co-regulation, movement, and therapy all help create more safe space in the middle — so you can handle life's obstacles without being pushed to either bank.