Do you ever find yourself in such a good rhythm in life where everything seems to be going your way? & then BOOM! life hits you with that weird curve ball with a series of unfortunate events, a week long of negative self talk & self doubt, and pretty much just a little random rain cloud forms over your head and you just feel stuck. Cause if yes, I can’t even tell you how many times I relate to each one of those situations!
Then your faced with, “how do I get out of this rut?”, “how do I make myself feel better and get back in my routine of feeling good?”. Well, like I said, I have experienced each one of these situations way to many times and I’m beyond familiar with how they feel. Just know that you are not alone. None of us are alone! Do you want to know why? Because no matter our differences, we are still human. We all share this same earth, this same space, and things like this happen, feelings like this arise & there is nothing you can do about it other than to take a deep breath, acknowledge those feelings, & find yourself to move past it.
When I find myself in these spots, there are a couple things I like to do to what I call, realign myself with myself. I find that in these times, I need to check in with my inner self and focus on the things that make me happy. Remind myself why I’m doing what I’m doing & bring my attention to the present moment & figure out how to move forward in a positive way.
Breathe
The first thing I make sure I do when I feel like all of these things crash down on me is breathe. Whatever I’m doing in that moment, I take a step back from the present, close my eyes, take 3-4 deep, long, meaningful breaths and I just let go. I tell myself that this is not my reality. Life is happening FOR me, not TO me. I tell myself that these are just minor set backs in my path. The best thing you can do is acknowledge these feelings. Bring yourself to feel them. I breathe it out until you feel as if you can let them go. Holding on to these negative moments is not healthy. Let go, let them be and live their feeling elsewhere because you, you are to powerful to let them control you.
Journal
Yes, journaling. I know this is a bit cliche and I’m sure you have already read about this before but I’m here to tell you how therapeutic it is and not to mention…how you can manifest certain things in your life using this tip alone! Getting your thoughts down on paper, physically writing them out, is so good for you. You get a better understanding of how you’re feeling and it makes situations just easier to deal with. I like to see it as how I let go of things. I jot them down on paper and its as if I’m releasing all of my tension and negativity onto my journal and I instantly feel a sense of relief. Another way I like to use my journal is to manifest the positivity in my life. Always write down what you desire in the present tense. Think, act, write, feel as if it is already yours. Your thoughts and actions hold a certain vibration that connects with the universe & that is what the universe responds to. Send out the positive vibes of what you want your life to look like or what you truly want and it will conspire to make that a reality. I find writing in the present tense helpful as well because it gets me out of my funk and gets me thinking about what actions I need to take to make whatever I’m writing down on paper happen!
Podcasts/Audio Books
One of my ABSOLUTE favorite ways to realign myself is podcasts. I listen to them on my commute to work, at the gym, on my walks, doing laundry, cleaning my room, literally ALL THE TIME…not even lying haha. I cannot stress this enough…FEED YOUR BRAIN WITH POSITIVE AND EMPOWERING THOUGHTS!! Drown out that negativity! Make it irrelevant in your life and focus on how you can turn your life around, realign yourself with who you are and your values, and don’t let that negative self talk sabotage what you’re here on this earth to do! Listen to inspirational recordings every chance you have. Train your brain to think this way so that realigning yourself just becomes natural and easy for you. Your brain is a muscle too. It’s just like doing leg day each week at the gym, you’re training legs to become stronger. Have days, especially on days where you need this realignment in your life, where you train your brain too. Help feed it the right kind of brain food to build up stronger so when life throws this curve ball at you, your brain is all like, “I GOT THIS, WE GOOD, WE STRONG!” This one on spotify is a compilation of AMAZING motivational speeches that are perfect for the gym! One of my other favorites is by an amazing em-powerful women (My idol basically…ahaha) Lori Harder – Earn Your Happy Podcast She is a GEM you guys. Another way I like to dive into self empowerment to realign myself is by listening to audiobooks. Audible is an AMAZING thing. If you are an Amazon FREAK (like me) than Audible is so worth it. Self help books is honestly what started my journey to becoming a feel good junkie. One of my favorites that I have read over 3 times is by Jen Sincero, You are a Badass. It is such an easy read and she is such a down to earth human being. All of her concepts just make sense! To listen to her talk and curse and just be real with you via the You are Badass Audiobook, makes it that much better! The title alone should make you want to exit out of this and download right away! This book changed my life and gave me the power to take my life back. Again, feed your brain the good stuff!
Self Care
Now this ties in a lot with feeding your brain positivity. Not only should you be taking care of your brain when you’re in this set back but, you should be taking care of your body too. A lot of people almost give up on everything when things aren’t going their way. They binge out on unhealthy food (which I get…sometimes its needed but there IS a limit), not moving their body, not caring about their appearance or their hygiene, and most of all..not SMILING. This is what fuels your mind to drown. You start to wallow and feel like nothing good is happening. SNAP OUT OF IT. I can’t stress how important this one is for realigning yourself! Take a nice bath, jump in the shower and wash that 3 (sometimes 4) day old hair, throw on a mask, whatever! Do what makes your body FEEL GOOD. Feed your body good things! I can’t stress this enough. There is a relationship with food and your state of mind. Sugar and processed foods are known to deplete your energy and bring your mood levels down to depression like states. Your body and your mind are connected, feed it good and positive things to help sustain your energy, happiness, and realignment. It’s so important! If you can, get outside! Connect with nature and this earth. The planet is so pure and full of life, get out there and take notice in the little things while you give your body some love and movement. Take yourself to the gym! Even if you just walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes…at least you’re moving! Get that blood pumping and flowing and let your body experience life too. Taking care of yourself is so important when you want to realign whats on the inside, you have to include your outside too!
Disconnect
Our lives revolve around the internet. It’s a beautiful thing…and its a terrible thing. Especially when you’re feeling a certain way…you just get stuck in the mindless BS that is in Facebook and YouTube etc. Try not looking at your phone or your email or social media for a little while. Start off with an hour a day and gradually move forward. LOOK UP rather than looking down. You will see things you didn’t see before and you will be able to connect with yourself rather than feeding your brain with mindless “what harry potter house would you be in” personality quizzes and shit. Disconnection is a beautiful thing! Try it! I guarantee you will start to think a lot clearer the more you do this everyday!
Meditation
This is another cliche subject I’m sure you have already seen in so many different blogs along with journaling. I’m here to tell you again…it works. Don’t get me wrong, meditation is hard…I’m still getting used to it. However, that’s why they call it a “meditation practice”…you practice! Start off by closing yourself off, disconnecting, and just close your eyes. If you need guidance there are SO MANY guided meditation videos on YouTube you can just throw on in the background and follow along (that’s what I do!). It can be challenging when you first start. You will start to just hear your thoughts louder than before! Your mind will start to wander, you will loose mindfulness of your breathe, you will fidget, you will wonder when its over…(am I scaring you yet? hahaha) Just know that is all NORMAL. You are not expected to be absolutely perfect at it your first couple of times. Whenever you feel your thoughts taking over, just focus back onto your breath. Take them in slowly and deeply and you will gain traction again. This will open up your mind and help you relax and let go of all that negative energy and help you tap into your inner self.
Gratitude
Probably the most important thing on this list. Be grateful. Be grateful for everything you have and everything that is coming to you. Even the little things. Tell yourself 3-5 things that you are grateful for every morning. Write them down in your journal. Show the universe how you are one with it and you are grateful to enjoy this journey even if you feel like you’re going down hill. This is the key. Gratitude is everything for your mindset and your health. When you are grateful and live your life in abundance, you will attract more things to be grateful for! I tell myself multiple things I’m grateful for in my life everyday. It is a natural mood booster and reduces the feelings of envy, makes your memories happier, and genuinely helps you bounce back from stress. You become more optimistic and life just begins to turn around in the most beautiful way. I truly call it the key to a happy life. That key opens so many doors for you to actually see what life is giving you and makes you want to keep pushing for more!
Theses 7 tips are my staples when I’m feeling down or lost. They haven’t failed me yet! Just remember to always love yourself and love the journey you’re embarking on. Life is supposed to be happy and filled with love! Don’t let minor set backs push you down. You are bigger than that, you are bigger than anything being thrown at you right now. Remember how strong and powerful you are and you will overcome EVERYTHING. Even if it feels like there is no hope, there is. Just believe. Tap into you and realign your mind and body, and start to really feel good!