Would you agree the past 10 months have been draining, causing you uncertainty, raising fears of the unknown? Have you or someone close to you been struggling with anxiety or depression, feeling down, struggling to take a deep breath, find your mind wandering, feeling overly emotional. Do you miss getting and giving hugs, that is the one I miss the most. Then It is time to press the reset button.
Emotions are our guiding force in everything we do and if we ignore them they don’t just go away, they stay and slowly get more and more intense. Often, we are afraid of looking at what is making us unusually emotional but for many, it is too hard. Fear of falling apart and not being able to pull yourself back together is often what stops many of us from admitting that something is wrong. However, I want to tell you that it is quite the opposite. You actually release feel good chemicals such as oxytocin and endorphins when you talk, cry, or use proper coping skills that help ease emotional pain.
If you want to make things better, don’t wait for the perfect day or time to do it. You get to make this choice, this decision, to make a change any day at any time. Research shows that on average we make 35,000 decisions a day, could you believe that!!!!! There are 1440 minutes in a day. Imagine if you used only one of those minutes a day and decided to press the reset button for your mental health.
So how do we press the reset button? The following is a list of ideas, you only need to start with one, but feel free to pick as many as you want or can.
- Add color to your home with flowers or fruits and vegetables or anything else that brightens up your home
- Get outdoors-go for a walk, a run, a bike ride, go sit in a park for just a few minutes a day
- Put on your favorite music, turn it up and let it get into your soul
- Meditate-you can do a mediation on the app breathe (which is the one i love) or any other app, you can find free ones on youtube or you can simply breathe in to the count of 4 and out to the count of 4 with your eyes closed and silently tell yourself to focus on your breathing for a minute or more
- Reach out to someone you used to enjoy seeing or talking to but have lost touch or have not spoken to in a while, they would love to hear from you
- Clear out something in your life, your desk, closet, draw, kitchen, any cabinet. It is refreshing
- Stick to a morning or evening routine
- Start writing in a Gratitude Journal-pick a journal you love to look at or feel, write 5 things a day that you are thankful for even on a bad day we can be grateful that we got to brush our teeth, feel the fresh air, or that we made it to the end of the day and can get back into our bed
- Go to bed a little earlier than usual
- Feel what you need to feel and fight through it, pain does not kill us. It is just hard to struggle through it, but remember pain is temporary and it will pass. Take 10 deep breaths and remind yourself you are a strong person!
Remember, we all go through highs and lows. This year has been an exceptionally tough one on what we have known as our normal. As we move forward, if we do not take a moment to pause and press the reset button, we will continue to go and go until we cannot anymore. So right now, Today, Press the Reset Button!!!!!!
