Body Language of Pacing
Cue: Pacing.
Synonym(s): Walking Back And Forth.
Description: Walking back and forth for the sake of burning off excess energy.
In One Sentence: Pacing is a sign of anxiety.
How To Use it: Use pacing to help burn off excess energy when one is not able to fix the actual issue. Pacing will release pain killing hormones and help simulate real productive action in your mind thus helping you overcome the negative thoughts.
Context: General.
Verbal Translation: “I’m uneasy and full of stress so I’m walking back and forth to burn off some of my excess energy and provide a self soothing feeling.”
Variant: See Fidgeting or Fidget and Foot Kicking.
Cue In Action: He paced back and forth while waiting for news about the surgery.
Meaning and/or Motivation: Pacing is a classic full-blown signal of anxiety, and falls into the energy displacement category because it gives us something to do and burns extra calories in a slight, but controlled fashion to make us feel more relaxed. It is the burning of energy that provides a release of soothing neurochemicals.
When pacing occurs, it is an indication that physiological factors are occurring. The body is likely producing stress hormone which creates the desire and capability to sustain action. In an evolutionary sense, this surge of adrenaline and cortisol would have pushed us from our inactivity in order to get things done. The action would then result in a soothing effect.
Cue Cluster: Watch for face touching, rubbing the back of the neck, blushing or blanching of the face, clenching and gripping, jerky movements, eyes alert, head up or down in thought, a worried facial expression, excess perspiration.
Body Language Category: Arousal, Displacement behaviour, Emotional body language, Energy Displacement, Nervous body language, Pacifying body language, Worry body language.
Resources:
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