We all have days where we perceive a slight from someone or something. Next thing you know your entire outlook on the day changes, you start getting short with people then all of a sudden you turn into that devil from Little Nicky, stomping around yelling at clouds. No one wishes to feel that way, and yet at one point or another in varying frequencies, we flip that switch. It’s unfortunate to those around us that have to put up with it. It’s the culmination of a ton of different immeasurable inputs, but the output is always the same- becoming someone who you wouldn’t want to be around yourself.
This happened to me a lot during my teens, and then tapered off through my college years. I didn’t begin to realize that I was in control of many of the inputs, or at least how to process those inputs, until I started to truly invest in myself. I want discuss some of the routines and activities I do on a regular basis that helps to avoid turning into that person no one wants to be around.
- Meditation
This tends to be a woo-woo topic for a lot of people who picture some Tibetan monk sitting crossed legged atop a mountain with Billy goats wandering amongst the foreground. You don’t necessarily need to book a trip to the Himalayas in order to achieve a level of calmness within yourself. For me, the practice of meditation is about teaching myself to not latch on to any one thought pattern and learn to let things roll by and not get lost in consciousness. A great app to start with is Headspace. However you choose to begin, it’s important to remember not to get frustrated if you find you drift off; just calmly bring it back to the reason why you are doing it in the first place and move forward from there.
A suggestion: Don’t get in the habit of telling yourself that a day’s session can be skipped because you’re having a good day or don’t feel you need that 10-15 minutes with yourself. Some of my most paradigm-shifting experiences have come when I was sure I don’t need to.
2.Writing
This doesn’t need to take the form of journaling or long-hand, it just needs to happen. When you listen to prolific writers talk about their process, such as Stephen King, they always note that the most difficult aspect is sitting down and beginning. You have to fucking do it. It’s not going to be good, nor does it particularly matter. What matters is the pen hitting the paper and you diverting some of that conscious and unconscious energy into words. After a while you relish the idea of sitting down, maybe with a glass of Malbec, and letting go for however long until you feel mentally satiated.
My tip: Try and do this as early in your day as possible. I find that when I don’t have time to make up my mind about how that day is going to go, the freer I am to express my thoughts. Be sure you get a cup of coffee or tea though- a little caffeine works wonders on an empty stomach.
3.Exercise
WAIT! This isn’t just a boring paragraph about how you need to get your lazy ass off the couch and do more ‘active stuff’. No, that wouldn’t be very helpful. In addition, this isn’t an article on losing weight or strengthening your cardiovascular system; it’s about helping to reduce the low-lying levels of inflammation that act like static, interfering with the normal healthy way of processing emotions and decisions.
So what do I mean? One 15-20 minute high-intensity burst every other day usually does the trick. Tabata -style workouts are great to get the heart rate elevated, dip into anaerobic stress, and keep you solely focused on the task at hand: busting your ass until the point of exhaustion.
The point is to exert yourself to the point that you trick your body into believing it is under attack, caveman style, running away from a lion that wants to eat you with its face, inducing a hormonal response that has far-reaching physiological benefits.
Would love to hear the different ways you keep yourselves from losing yourself in this crazy world. Or, jlet me know some smaller things that you find periods of relative tranquility.
As always, appreciate ya for reading.
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