"Chasing meaning is better for your health than trying to avoid discomfort."
Watch this video. And then we'll talk.
TED strikes again, ladies and gentlemen.
This science changes things for anxious folks. One of the most powerful tips I have ever been given about coping with stress and anxiety is to let myself feel the physiological feelings my body experiences in anxious moments. Just let the feelings wash over me. Acknowledge them. Experience them. Because they are JUST feelings. And I don't always have to know why my body feels them. There isn't always a good reason or something I should be worried about. In fact most of the time - when I was feeling anxious often - it was just because of my serotonin and Mood Monsters.
So knowing this, what Kelly McGonigal* talked about above, COMPLETELY CHANGES THINGS when it comes to our stress response! I would LOVE to think of the "yucky" anxious feelings we all feel from time to time as my body preparing me for success! So now I will. And then maybe we can take those moments of I-feel-so-anxious-for-no-apparent-reason and turn them into "Hmmm I'm feeling pretty anxious... maybe that means I'm about to do something cool. Or that I should go for a run. Or go kick some a$$ at a Zumba class. Or just say 'Hey body, we're all good here. Save it for a time when I'm really going to need this preparation.'"
Wow. I think this changed my life.
And I hope it can do a little something for yours too.
Happy Sunday, everyone. I hope you are relaxed and content.
*Her last name is McGonigal!! I'm going to pretend like it's actually spelled McGonagall, and that her first name is actually Minerva.
Bye!
Today's jam: "Little Too Much" by Natasha Bedingfield
No comments:
Post a Comment