We have 80,000 thoughts per day, do you know which ones are you being directed by? Do you know what happens when you observe your thoughts? Before we can lead our minds in any particular direction, we first must be an observer. And during these stressful times, it’s even more important to be more aware of our thoughts and emotions.
PANDEMIC POWER: Gratitude
To expand on our topic from last week, where we discovered how repeating negative thoughts in a loop (a.k.a. rumination) can make us miserable, let’s explore the concept of GRATITUDE. Neuroscience has proven what the Psychology field has long postulated and even what The Law of Attraction says – the more you focus on the things you’re grateful for, the more things will come into your life for which to be thankful (“like attracts like”).
We already know that replacing our negative thoughts with a substitute thought is helpful. Finding the silver lining of a challenging or difficult situation can help us feel more powerful and in control.
But what if we proactively seek positivity and gratitude?
PANDEMIC POWER: Banish Repetitive Thoughts
PANDEMIC POWER: Embracing Your Emotions
Our emotions are probably all over the place right now—and for good reason!
You may be stressed because a loved one has contracted the virus or works in a high-risk job, facing financial overwhelm due to loss of income, or just frustrated being stuck in your house with your entire family for weeks.
A lot of us are feeling intense emotions because of the pandemic, with few outlets for them. If you’re anxious, afraid, lonely, stressed-out, please know you’re not alone, and that all of your feelings are both VALID and NORMAL. It’s an overwhelming time, and your psyche is just trying to keep up and process everything!
PANDEMIC POWER: Your Breath
How often do you think about your breathing? Probably not often. It’s one of those things our nervous system controls without our noticing.
When you’re stressed, scared, nervous, or angry, have you noticed the rhythm of your breathing changes? It does! That’s your sympathetic nervous system, which is sometimes called the “fight or flight” system.
When this system is activated, our breathing becomes quick and shallow, which is fine for short periods, but we want to move out of that mode pretty quickly and activate our parasympathetic nervous system, which is all about rest, healing, and digestion.
PANDEMIC POWER: Keep it Moving!
As we’ve been cooped up in our houses on lockdown for weeks, it’s normal to see levels of exercise drop dramatically, and maybe you were all in at the beginning when you first started your new routine, but I know a lot of you are getting a second wave of the stir crazies. Or maybe you just need to mix things up.
PANDEMIC POWER: Meditation
There’s a reason why meditation has been used by people all over the world for an incredibly long time. There’s evidence of the practice in Indian scriptures as far back at 3,000 years (and some even say 5,000 years)! Why? Because it works and the the effects can have a powerful effect on your life. It’s even more important right now.
PANDEMIC POWER: Rest + Sleep
How many of you have stayed up until the wee hours recently reading dreadful news on your phones in bed? Or if you somehow managed to put your phone down, did you then toss and turn for hours?
Anxiety and fear can totally wreck our sleep patterns, and it’s hard to imagine a more pressing time than the one we’re in. Emotional fatigue on top of the physical effects of sleep deficits can take an enormous toll on the body’s ability to fight off infection.
PANDEMIC POWER: Boosting Your Immune System
During something like a global pandemic, one of the first things people feel stripped of is their power. There’s fear, anxiety, loss of control, panic…you name it. I want to empower you with some simple knowledge. First up, our immune systems. They need boosting regularly, but especially when threats of a serious virus are amidst us.