Have you asked yourself what caused your pain? Was it the event? Was it the perspective you were viewing the situation from? Life is full of ups and downs, moments of setback, and will make you question everything in your life. To make the downs manageable, I have been actively working on maintaining a positive and open mindset. Ask yourself this question: Can there be a rainbow with no rain?
Through journaling, I learned that the fear of not having control over a situation caused the situation to control me. When in a difficult situation, we often become anxious because we believe that we lack control of what will happen next. Wrong! We fall into what I call self-pity mode which I see as a black hole, difficult to escape. In reality, we have control over how we respond which holds more power than we think it does. How you respond to a situation matters more than what actually happens.
To avoid falling into the black hole of self-pity, I make a habit of completing certain exercises to help build that muscle in my brain. Here are some examples:
Acknowledge the good things you do for others
Forgive yourself for any past mistakes
Allocate time for friends and family who make me feel happy
Be mindful of how I am treating my body
Photo courtesy of Pinterest
When I am in the middle of the storm, I enjoy reading this quote by Charles Swindoll. This quote helps calm my anxiety as it reminds me of what I can control. Trust me when I say, I understand. This is not a walk in the park. At times, we are our worst critics, but this is why it is even more important to be self aware and let that motivate us to change. Become committed to making change, and through the small changes, it will add up to huge results!