One thing I wanted to focus on this year was developing resilience. Life is challenging. We all deal with comparison, criticism, despair, discouragement, disappointment, having no ideas, having too many ideas, indecision, perfectionism, procrastination. These are the voices in my head, maybe in yours too although I suspect that for each of us the cacophony of voices taking up space in our head is slightly different. That cruel inner critic knows exactly what your pain points are and how to poke them just so to make you squirm in discomfort.
Our subconscious mind makes up 95% of all of our thoughts. That means most of our actions are predetermined by the unconscious loop we live by. Consider that for a moment.
So how do we change those thought loops? How do we build resilience? These are the tools I’m using:
Practice self-care. Tend to my heath (emotional, mental, and physical).
Have a posse. Find someone you can truly be yourself with. And then find another someone that is in your corner. These are your people you will turn to for a shoulder to cry on, for encouragement, for sharing a laugh. Grow your posse slowly and with care.
Turn to your work. By work, I mean the work that is meaningful to you. It may be what you do at your job. More likely than not, it’s going to be the work you do after hours, on the weekend, the work that lights you up and turns you on.
Find sanctuary. This can be an inner sanctuary. It can also be a physical space. Maybe it’s a room in your house. Maybe, like me, you live in a small house so it’s an out-of-the-way corner in a room. Either way, it is a place for you to do your work (see above), to dream, to be you.
Journal. Put words on a page to get them out of your head. Those looping thoughts that create self-doubt are better on a page than taking up precious real estate in your head. I like journaling as a tool because when the inner voices get loud and I begin to doubt myself, I can turn back through pages and pages to see that I have experienced this before as well as see past successes and wins.
Move your body. One of the most effective ways to stop those looping words in their tracks is to move your body.
What tools do you rely on to build resilience and to hush those critical voices in your head?
This week’s writing prompt:
When you begin cycling through an endless loop of pain points, write them down list style. For each point that you write down, ask yourself, Is this true? If it is, write true next to the word. For each true point, write down how you can change it, how you can use this pain point to build resilience.
It’s almost time for our spring detox — join us!
I plan to start my 7-day Functional Medicine Detox on Saturday, March 20, the first day of spring. What better way to kick off spring cleaning than taking care of health?!?
This 7-day FM Detox is for you if you’re ready to get rid of:
Bloating and water retention
Low energy
Low mood
Slow metabolism
Inflammation
Joint pain
Brain fog
Learn more here. Still have questions? Reach out!