Sometimes things in life need a new perspective and then it will all seem better.
This weekend I was working through a lot of emotions around the state of the world (Brexit, Black lives matter, Orlando, Dallas, US & UK politics), around an irritating child-care situation (childish Au Pair who resigned because she damaged my car and didn’t want to pay for it), and around my ex-husband (whose words and actions communicate different messages to my children).
A lot of my work is static – I sit at my desk and write, and blog, and play techie with my website, and talk to my clients and take notes, and make vlogs. But, because I build my own schedule I factor in a lot of movement-time – walking/running with my dog, biking, hiking, yoga, weight-lifting, ballet etc. Sometimes, however, I feel the need to move with a purpose, so I tuned into NPR and spent 3 or 4 hours in my yard this weekend.
I weeded & re-planted my yard. I tied up tomato plants and watered. Then I put on my protective glasses and headset and mowed the lawn. As I looked at the lawn, it occurred to me to try and mow it perpendicular to our normal mowing angle. Due to the curve of the land, we had had to use a weed-whacker to finish the edges because the lawn mower can’t get the edges. However, this new way of mowing meant that I did not have to pull out the weed-whacker – score! I shortened the time needed to mow, reduced the amount of gasoline I was expending into the atmosphere from my tools and felt immensely satisfied!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned as a mother of a cancer-survivor (and two other kids with their various trials and tribulations), as the recipient of verbal domestic abuse (which I didn’t see, it was pointed out by our marital therapist), as a survivor of divorce and as a coach who has done a lot of self-work and has had a daily meditation practice for 8 years, is that perspective is a HUGE part of how we feel.
We have the power to change how we feel, but sometimes we need the impetus to shift our perspective. Look at the world from a different angle, take a break from it and try again.
Here are my tips to turn it around:
TIPS
- Step Away & Take a Break! Turn on some music and shake it. Laugh. Maybe fart jokes are your thing or some Eddie Izzard (the Horse Whisperer, anyone?).
- Pull Yourself Together. Breathe: imagine the spine is a column, from the pelvic floor to just above the crown of the head: inhale up and exhale down, imagining the path the breath is taking (past the reproductive & digestive organs, lungs, heart, nose, eyes etc), balancing the length of the inhale and exhale. Meditate.
- Think It Through. Talk to someone who cares about you, but who will be honest with you. Write down your feelings and thoughts – reflect. Do an activity that allows your mind to wander off – run, hike, garden, cook, do laundry – and see what answers you find!
Come back at it again: with renewed energy and a new perspective.
Believe me. You’ve got this.
NEED SOME ENERGY AROUND EXERCISE?
5 Tips to Add Exercise to Your Busy Life!
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Copyright Tamsin Astor, YogaBrained LLC, 2016