Category: Reacting

Observing Thoughts and Vibrations

Thoughts.RopeI have been thinking about writing something that would be beneficial and not be the same old stuff we are seeing being posted on social media sites and definitely not what has been broadcasted over the media 24/7.  Yes, we all have been affected in one way or another and to quote a friend of mine, “it doesn’t matter what our specific belief systems are or what philosophy we hold, we have been stirred and fake news and pseudo facts are not helpful.”

Neither is our own “unchecked thinking.” It is too easy to spiral out of control with our thoughts and imagine worst possible scenarios and then start believing in them. Yet I understand… we don’t like ambiguity and some would rather imagine the worst and plan in their heads what they would do in order to feel in control of something versus slowing down for a few weeks in our homes and only go out when we need supplies or services. We want black and white and the truth is… we never really have it. We create our lives, routines and scenarios in our life to feel like we are in control. But life wiggles… we wiggle. And we need to practice useful thinking to guard our hearts and minds in the moments we have. This is the best practice in all time periods, not just the one we are in. But, if you are sinking and unable to stop your thinking and feelings from taking you down a rabbit hole of anxiety, despair, or depression, DO NOT SIT THERE ALONE! Make a call to a friend, a co-worker, a counselor, or someone in your community that can get you connected to others. This is not the time to let yourself be taken down. phone hand setSituations always seem more monstrous when we suffering from fear, depression, or anxiety. If you don’t know who to call, you can call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): 1-800-662-HELP (4357). They are there 24/7.

Did you know that mindful thinking raises good vibrations in our body and changes our chemical make up so that we actually are physically different? Breath work and meditation changes our brains and we then we can have a greater state of calm. No, we can’t just be calm like our mom use to say… “calm down!” We have to take an action and slow down, and take deep breaths, and learn other mindfulness technics. Yes, we have to do the work. I would rather do that than spin out with apocalyptic thinking that serves no healthy purpose to my body and mind. It only creates more stress. So take the time to slow down and look online for breathwork practices or meditation exercises. You can control one thing… it is your thoughts and what you choose do with them.

Link to how Breath-work benefits the mind and body: https://chopra.com/articles/how-breathwork-benefits-the-mind-body-and-spirit

I am fortunate to live in an area where I am safe. I am fortunate to have a home and a job which I can work from home in a company that is on top of their game and cares 100% about their employees and customers. Grateful, grateful, grateful! I am fortunate that I have skills and crafts that keep my mind in positive places and that I can talk with others and be of some value to their mental wholeness. Many of us have not practiced mindfulness… which helps to stop the “spinning out” with our thoughts. Many people are affected by this current state of health concerns. Shopping malls are closed, businesses are closed or very restricted. There are lines at grocery stores in the cities and suburbs. We have not been here in this moment of time before and we don’t know what it will look like next week. But we know what it looks like today. If you are reading this, you have a pulse. You have a computer or a device that lets you stay connected. We are a creative people with thoughts that are creative as well. You create your day with your thoughts, with what you watch, with what you say, and with what you believe. I am in no way diminishing that this is hard for most and uncomfortable for many. But please, if you want information, limit it to what is only necessary for you in your area. Reposting stats and news snips that are already in the media could add stress to you and your friends that follow your social media feeds. Ask the question, “Is this helpful?” before you post or repost. Here is what I have kept my finger on:

 

The Media is so hyped right now that they are not telling you the good things that are occurring around the world, i.e., China is back to shopping in malls, children are returning to school, businesses are reopening there, and they are closing the extra emergency hospitals that were opened because they are not needed anymore.

Person Writing Today I Am Grateful For Text On NotebookLook for the good in your moment, right where you are. Look for the good that is happening around you. Focus on the good you would like to see, what you may do once we are over this hump. What are some of the things you are grateful for? Ponder them. Write about them. Who are you grateful for? Call them. Text them a love note. Create a ripple of Good right were you are. You can change your vibration and that good vibration can change other people’s vibrations.

Lastly… we can send positive vibes to others via what I have learned called Metta Meditation also known as Loving Kindness Meditation. Think of those you love who you are separated from. Think of those at your jobs or on the front lines. Think of people in other parts of our world who are also experiencing challenges. Here are some links:

When you don’t know what to do…. Practice this. You will shift your mood and shift your energy thereby changing how you are able to cope better now and in all situations.

Blessings to all…

  • May you be safe
  • May you be at ease
  • May you be healthy
  • And may you be happy

~ Sue

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Choosing to Observe

I read an email from Mike Dooley a few days ago. He said, “Instead of saying I am Happy or I am Sad or I am Hurt or I am Angry, pause and then say… “I choose to be Happy, Hurt, Sad, Angry, etc.” It woke me up to owning where I was going. Also, it No.Blameshowed me where I place blame. No blame is needed… I am acknowledging my choices. I was driving my car home after work this past week and I was tired after a full day of work and all that it entails. But I caught myself and said out loud “I choose to be tired.” Hmmm? What that gave me was the time to pause and think about if I am really tired or am I just saying this for another reason or out of habit? It also allowed me to ask this question: “do I really want to be tired?” So I said to myself out loud, “I choose to be happy. I have had a full day and I am hungry and will eat as soon as I get home.” Just adding “I choose” in front of whatever statement I was about to say evoked the question “do I really want that?”  It shows me the power I have to choose. If you are like me, we grew up learning to blame and not taking responsibility for our feelings. We may have heard things like, “you make me so mad” or “see what you made me do” or “don’t make me think like that.” Wow! How we gave our power and happiness away to other people!

I think that when I say or think things unconsciously out of habit, they perpetuate feelings and outcomes for which I am just used to experiencing. It is like if we always say “Mondays Suck” then that brings with it the expectation and hence, the creation or experience of a sucky Monday. The power of our word and thought is huge and this exercise to say “I choose” in front of what we are feeling brings awareness and mindfulness.

This doesn’t mean that when I am truly hurt, angry or sad I blame myself for a less Thoughts.Ropethan a wonderful experience. No! But, if I am aware that I am ultimately in charge of my life and what I believe, then when I am irritated and hurt I can navigate through it better. What I choose to think and believe next will either take me through and out of the experience stronger or it will spin me downward to be consumed by it. Every thought is a choice and it is a practice to corral them to where I want them to take me; how I want to feel and be in the situation.

I believe that how I feel is directly related to what I am thinking and those things that I am telling myself. Yes, at the end of the day I need to have sufficient sleep and if I am feeling ill, I may need to make an appointment with a doctor. There are actions that I am to take to care for myself AND… those actions include becoming aware of what I am telling myself repeatedly or what am I saying about a situation that rises before me and how I react to it. Those spontaneous reactions are also very informative to my beliefs as they are not guarded and hidden but very much Think.Positivetell tale of what is in my heart and mind when something from left field enters my day or moment.

It takes consciousness to be happy. It is an inward thing. And it takes consciousness to be aware of the stories that you nor I want to play out in our lives anymore. Consciousness is cause and thus I am in training to bring about what I desire by exercising my power of choice.

Choosing to Observe,

Sue

To Flail is Human, But There is a Reason

StopWhy did I flail and get all upset when he honked his horn at me on the corner? Traffic was still going by in both directions. We did not have the right of way. They did not have a stop sign and yet he honked! How rude!!! I flailed my arms up above the seats faster than my thoughts. I looked at him in the rear view mirror and then pointed in both directions of the cars coming into view as if he could see me. He did and he raised his hands with palms towards me in some apologetic jester. I was not softened by it. My heart and mind were reeling. “Duh!!! The person in front of you is stopped for a reason,” I thought out loud. When the traffic cleared I made my left turn. He did, too. I got a bit ahead as I didn’t want him near me.

Grief has an edge to it and accentuates my feelings; shortening my reaction times or rather, I forget to hit the pause button and breathe for 10 seconds before I react.  And on that corner, at that stop sign yesterday, I didn’t remember this… I just flailed my arms and expressed indignant feelings for another mile as I drove toward the highway.

Flailing as I did, I learned less than an hour later, was about my need to know I was OK. That I had not done anything wrong and to be accused of such, by the honk of the horn, was to be questioned… was to tell me that I was not in the right place.

Thank goodness I was on my way to my practitioner session. At first I wasn’t going to share this little scene as there were other things I wanted to talk about. But over half way through our session, I shared about the encounter on the corner. She asked me about the flailing and what I thought it was about for me. I paused and said, “I’m not sure, but I knew traffic was coming and I couldn’t go… I wasn’t doing anything wrong.” Ah… the nugget of truth… I needed to know I was OK, that nothing was or is wrong in the bigger picture. The little girl inside me needed to feel safe and assured… not accused and pushed. It wasn’t about the blue truck behind me and his inappropriate honking as one would initially observe, it was about trying to do my best during this time of my life and feeling that I am OK in the midst of much change and shifting emotions. I needed to just hold my heart and say, “Your OK. Nothing is wrong, you haven’t done anything wrong.” His honking wasn’t about me, but my reactions to his honking were and in that I learned what was needed. I am OK right where I am and as I heard this, I teared up. Funny how we do that when the truth of our being is revealed.

Observation Expressed,

Sue