We Can't Go Back to the Way Things Were
In This Episode…
Cultivating…
new habits
resilience
relationships
Key Points
A common excuse for not getting things done is that you don't have enough time. But many people who use this excuse are just deceiving themselves, because they can do something, but they don't want to.
There has never been a better time to replace one habit for another. But, it doesn't happen automatically. It must happen intentionally.
Acceptance is saying "It is what it is," and working with that instead of constantly thinking about what you want but don’t have, or wanting this all to just go away so you can have your old life back. Acceptance is the first step of dealing with any hardship. You must admit how you really feel, let go of the things you can't control, and face the issue so you can confront it and eventually conquer the negative coping behaviors from that feeling.
When we go through adversity, if we can learn from what is happening and have a healthy dose of support and encouragement, we can come out of that struggle stronger and better people.
What You Can Do
Whenever you want to change a habit, behavior or routine, you must first change your words and thoughts. Speaking aloud what you will do has a powerful effect on the mind, especially if you do it consistently.
Schedule time in your day to remind yourself what you could be doing instead of your default. Take just 10-20 minutes and go for a walk, call a friend, or whatever it is that will help you start building a new routine or habit. Sometime thing that improve your well being or that of someone you care about.
Denial does not work well. It may help you decieve yourself for awhile, but as a long-term coping strategy for all the losses caused by this pandemic, start with acceptance.
Starting from where you are right now, acknowledge all your feelings. Whatever you feel, you first have to own it. Ask yourself, "What's true for me right now?" Then meditate on it, pray about it, journal, or talk to someone about it.
Get in a quiet space and reflect on your faith and spirituality. Take some time to sit and think about what you believe, because what you believe influences how you feel. Those thoughts and feelings will eventually turn into action. Actions could meditation, exercise, calling or video chatting with a friend. But whatever helps you can can anchor you in a time such as this.
Cultivate gratitude. You don't need to get into the comparison thing, recounting the ways that it could be worse for you, or that so-and-so has it really bad compared to your life. Nope. Just look at what you have, and thank God for it. Take moments throughout the day to be thankful. Challenge yourself to name things big and small when you do this. And if you write it down, you can look back on it later as a pick-me-up when you're not in such a happy mood.
Resources
13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do by Amy Morin
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Resiliency 2.0: How to Flourish in the Face of Adversity