Do you find yourself searching online for topics about how to make yourself feel better and do better in your daily life, your relationships, with your kids or your co-workers or just your internal self? Well, me too. And often what I find is good, and sometimes really helpful, but also sometimes not exactly what I’m looking for. And I want more. I want another perspective, more examples, something, anything that I can identify with and say, yeah that sounds like my situation. For a very long time, I’ve felt a calling to do something that could help others. I didn’t know what it was. But through a lot of prayer and a pretty solid set of challenging life experiences I realized I could potentially connect with others who have similar questions about their emotional well-being. That’s why I’m here. And I hope the things I post will help you figure out why you made it here, too.
Understanding why things are the way they are or why you’re feeling the way you are about something can take over and can completely derail your day. There’s no cookie cutter answer to emotional stressors or triggers or thoughts or actions by you or those you love. When you take into consideration physiological circumstances like hormones, age, health, genetics and combine that with different life experiences like your past, how you were raised, your influences, then pile on any number of different personalities, the answer is almost never simple. Hopefully this will be a site that can help you at least have one more consideration for figuring it out.
I’ll do my very best to provide resources and fun tools you can use to help you on your wellness journey. I’ve always been an optimist, I believe partially because I was born that way and partially because some of the junky experiences I’ve had gave me thick skin. I can move on pretty quickly from emotional pain. It’s something I’ve really learned to appreciate, but just because I can move on doesn’t mean that it’s not agonizing when it’s happening. I see the deep struggle some of my friends and family members have with letting go of emotional pain. I enjoy being an ear to listen and a sounding board for thoughts. But I also want them to get the answers they need and the relief of being able to let something poisonous go.
There are tools you can use to cope, the number one coming from the big guy in the sky! I definitely won’t gloss over the fact that the reason I’m able to do any of the things I can are because of God. I’ve faced some very grim situations, been at the point of complete despair, and he was the one who rescued me. Faith is the absolute number one tool you and anyone else can use to make it through your darkest days. Once you find it, it doesn’t mean you’re not going to have struggle; but it does mean you’ll have a sense of peace that it’s all going to be okay in the end. Faith fits into pretty much everything.
I also believe that God works through people on this Earth to bring others what they may not know they need sometimes. That can be tactics to deal with a particularly bothersome situation. It can be a piece of education that helps you identify something new about yourself. Or it can be a quote or an image or a song or whatever… a sign, if you will, that lets you know that you do have someone who loves you, is watching out for you and is just waiting for you to give in to what you already know inside.
So welcome! Thank you for visiting. And I hope you get something GOOD out of what I WRITE.
Amy
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11
Here are a few simple tips that may help you rid yourself of toxic thoughts:
Try to figure out what triggers it.
If you know that every time you get on social media or do some other specific thing you’re going to feel depressed, then change your pattern. Give yourself limits to how often you allow yourself to participate with that platform. Say no more than 10 minutes each day.
Move your body.
It doesn’t have to be a high intensity workout. Or even a workout at all. You just need to make sure you’re getting up and around on a regular basis each day. Set your alarm to remind you to get up and walk every hour, preferably outside. Even if you walk or run in place while you’re watching TV, that’s better than just moving from one stationary position to another.
Don’t hold everything inside.
If your feelings are eating you up, get them out. Believe me, they’ll come out one way or another and you’d likely rather be the decider of when that is. Talk to a family member or friend. Confide in a therapist or call a hotline number with counselors who are available to talk. Even if it’s just literally talking to yourself, do so, out loud.
Do something you’ve never done before, preferably something you have to study and practice to figure out how to do.
It will not only teach you a new skill, lead to new adventure or help you meet new people, but it can take your mind off of what’s bothering you and give you a new focus.
Get better sleep to battle mental stress.
A couple suggestions to help do that are to turn down your thermostat and the lights. Research shows that keeping a cool room can help you get a better night’s sleep. According to Mental Health America, the optimal temperature is between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit. And the darker the better. Having too much light in the room while you sleep can mess with your body making melatonin, a hormone that regulates your sleep-wake cycle.
