‘You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated.
In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.’
Maya Angelou
There’s an old saying if at first you don’t succeed then try and try again, this is what Maya Angelou’s message is for all of us!
Since stepping out to launch my own counselling and psychotherapy private practice which has been exhilarating, exciting, daunting and scary. Although it’s very early days for me, something that I’ve chosen to fall back on time and time again is my Faith and the Belief -
I can Survive this and I will not be defeated a good reframe on negative thinking,
“do you think so”?
I haven’t arrived yet at the heavy pull of feeling completely defeated, although I have to admit there have been moments when I have asked myself “what the heck am I doing”?
Life is an ocean of waves it comes in ebbs and flows and not all situations will turn out as you had hoped for, planned for or expected to happen as you predicted its outcome?
Something that I’m big on and that is the practice of ‘Positivity’
Positivity such as positive psychology that we’re hearing a lot about recently and has been clinically researched and studies appear to suggest that thinking positive thoughts is an antidote for our overall wellbeing. “Well Go Figure”
So!!! Are you the type of person whose cup is always half empty or half full ?
Thankfully I’m a half full kind of person 90% of the time of course there’s always room for improvement.
So how do we let go of these negative thoughts and beliefs ?
In my personal and professional practices I’ve experimented with mindfulness and meditation, it’s a great way to build up inner resilience as its equips us to observe setbacks with a noticing of curiosity and an inquiring mind.
Mindfulness Teaches us to Just Be
As we learn to simply Just Be it’s a kind of joining if you like, rather than fighting and resisting the good, bad feelings and those thoughts that stretch and cause you to contract .
When we sit with all that we are feeling and choose to notice and observe, that which we would prefer to ignore or pull away from its here we adapt to our internal compass of our inner emotional world.
By going underground we make friends with the enemy, as this has been proven to build inner resilience as the experience of feeling the good and the bad feeling thoughts that often accompany these ‘uncomfortable’ and challenging setbacks.
Mindfulness is a necessary tool for building up your resilience for mental clarity, emotional, physical and spiritual Well-Being.
To Observe Thyself
Notice the thoughts coming in and out as they rise and fall and just to be ok with what your feeling in each moment “Notice and Observe’ the Ebbs and Flows.
Build Your Resilience
If at first you don’t succeed take a walk and buy yourself an ice-cream ‘always seems to have worked for me !!!
Life is like that it’s just life – there are going to be days of great higher highs and lower lows with plenty of in-betweens sprinkled on top ‘Yes lots of them’.
Wherever you may be on this path called ‘Life’ know that it’s easier to believe that everyone else has it all sussed and that their life is so perfect isn’t it ?
They appear to have it all and must have your share of the luck too!
When we begin to accept our feelings all of them from loss to sadness by not judging yourself to harshly and not always beating yourself up resilience is grown.
This is when you can pull on your resilience big pants, step into drawing on resilience and saying “I’m doing my best”, “I’m giving it my all”, “I’ll give it another go and see success grow”
Who knows what great things can magically manifest when a tiny seed is planted and now see the greatness of a Mighty Oaktree has grown from that tiny seed, when it was underground you could not see its transformation taking form could you ?
So! I invite you to practice siting with all thoughts and feelings over the next 21 days if your prepared to fight the good fight because …
Mindfulness Grows Resilience