Tag: Mental Health

Addicted To Thought

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Confession

I’ve officially been MIA from my blog.  Not because I had nothing to say, simply because I couldn’t find the words nor energy to express all the things circling around in my head.  While my writing ceased, my thoughts grew.  That’s how it happens.  I begin going inward, getting lost in my own thoughts, lost in the worry of tomorrow and pain of yesterday.  It feels as if I lack the ability to get out of my own head.  I become trapped there. Fighting. Fighting through depression, fighting through sickness, fighting tiredness.  I become more and more unconnected.  I distance myself from friends, family, even Brent.  I feel alone in my pain, alone in my depression, alone in my cerebral prison.

Unfortunately, this experience is not new to me.  I have become aware of this pattern in my life.  The first step is admitting you have a problem, right?

Hello, my name is Kristal.  I am addicted to thought.

Cerebral Prisoner

I have become controlled by my thoughts.  This has led to being anxious, depressed, hopeless…I could go on.

So now what?  What do you do when your prison guard is with you 100% of the time?  How do you escape?

My quest begins!  I am hopeful that I will be able to break this habit.  I recently learned, I am not my mind.  Sounds crazy, right?  It’s not.  That statement alone has allowed me to climb out of the dark caverns I’ve been hiding in.  It has given me freedom to live.  I am not my thoughts.  Instead I am the keeper of thoughts, the watcher of the mind.

I am becoming more aware.  More aware of my thoughts, my emotions, my reactions, my anxieties.

The Watcher

So far, this has been quite a change.  It is changing the way I look at myself.  I am no longer defined by my mind.  I am the watcher.  I like it.  Just this slight change in perception has already helped to quell my anxieties.  Becoming the watcher has made me feel more at peace, more even tempered, more hopeful.

I have so far to go.  My mind is not the only thing that is in desperate need of change.  While hibernating in the darkness I have not been kind to my mind or body.  I know that.  Again…I am admitting…. As I become more and more identified with the watcher I am more aware of the need for balance.  Yes, balance (there’s that word again, my favorite word for quite some time now.  Balance in all things is what I’m after).  I must start feeding my body what it needs.  I must start moving more.  I must keep myself hydrated.

Begin Again

Stoked, to see what this journey is going to teach me.  Happy, that instead of becoming the definition of insanity, I am breaking those patterns in my life that aren’t working for me.

This is just the beginning.  I am retraining my brain.  Taking charge of my mind, which gives me charge of my life.  I WILL run my life, instead of life running me.

Recent Inspo

Women Who Run With the Wolves

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The Power of Now

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Live Your Legend

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What are your thoughts?  Do you identify yourself solely through your thoughts?  Do you think the mind is powerful enough to control us without our even being aware of it?  

 

 

 

Boost Your Mood

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I’ve been in a low recently.  Booo hissss.  Good news is, I’m climbing on up!  I’ve done some soul searching, some meditation, lots of reading…you get the picture.  My mind and soul are feeling much better, but I have still been lacking in the body department.  Since my goal is balance in all things, I’ve gotta get my butt in gear!!  Get movin’!

I made this infographic to share some much-needed motivation for myself & anyone else feeling the struggle.

Here’s to hoping this gives someone a little boost!boost

 

Mindfulness: There’s An App For That

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What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness defined by Merriam-Webster:

1: the quality or state of being mindful

2:  the practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis; also :  such a state of awareness

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Ever gotten in your car, arrived somewhere, then thought, “How did I get here?”

Sat down with a bag of Milanos turned on your fav Netflix addiction, suddenly look down only to realize the bag in your lap is empty?

Found yourself, anxious, mind racing, worrying about a situation that may or may not EVER happen?

I can’t be alone here! Right?

We lose ourselves in the noise.  It seems to be the norm these days. Have you ever met anyone that is just naturally mindful? Aware?  I haven’t.  I am sure they exist, heck maybe you are one of those people.  Good for you!  For the rest of us, mindfulness takes practice.

Practice Makes Perfect?

Practice?  Practice mindfulness?

Yes, that’s right.  Practice.

As for perfection?  I really [don’t] hate to break it to you, just in case you didn’t know already… You aren’t built for perfection. None of us are! Don’t expect your meditation to be.

It can be HARD to reign in the mind.  It feels unnatural to sit quietly…DOING NOTHING {GASP}. Even when I conquer the guilt, there are days my brain just won’t cooperate.  Insisting on going 10,000 directions, the mind refuses to be leashed.  Then, other days I have focus. I leave those meditations feeling like a BOSS, feeling like I can sit in Atlanta traffic without swearing, like I can solve world hunger (I’ll let you know if any of those happen).  Ups and downs.  So while I can’t promise you will suddenly find yourself sitting underneath the Bodhi tree.  What I will promise is, the more you practice mindfulness, the easier it becomes.

I’ve been finding more time for me. And guess what? The more time I spend in meditation, the more I find mindfulness in my every day life. I’m becoming more and more aware of my NOW.  Of this very moment. Of the breath giving life to my body.  Of the sounds and smells around me. Of my thoughts and emotions.

Mindfulness brings awareness to who you TRULY are.  

Who you were MEANT to be!

Where Do I Start?

Maybe you know all about meditation.  Maybe you know NOTHING.  Either way, mindfulness is achievable.  If you can breathe (if you can’t, I’m pretty sure you have bigger problems than how to be mindful…just sayin…) you can meditate.

The secret of meditation?? Meditating.

Just DO IT!  Start right now, wherever you are.

It’s as simple as taking a moment, closing your eyes, finding your breath and focusing on only that.  Breath in, Breath out.  That’s it.  Repeat.

Connect to that life-giving breath.  Really feel it.  Take some deep breaths.  Breathe normally.  When your mind begins to wander, gently bring it back to your breathing.

That’s it.  That’s meditation. That’s mindfulness. You did it!

It’s seriously that easy.  You don’t have to fold yourself into a pretzel, you don’t have to become a Buddhist monk.  You don’t even have to sing Om.  Nope, none of that.

And you know what I love?? Mindfulness meditation can benefit EVERYONE.  It makes my heart happy.  It doesn’t matter how old you are, your religious affiliation, your culture, your sexual orientation, your ethnicity.  None of that matters.  Meditation is for everyone, mindfulness helps us all!

I don’t know about you, but in this crazy world, I need all the help I can get.

You Said There Was An App For That!

Ok, ok so the point of all my ramblings…

If you wanna dig a little deeper into this mindfulness business, or maybe you already have a meditation practice. Doesn’t matter… Either way, I made a discovery for you!!!!!

I am SO STOKED with this new app I downloaded a few weeks ago!!!!  Yep, I am a weirdo.  Yep, I do get excited about random things.  This is one of those things.

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Smiling Mind

On my quest to find some new guided meditations I found TONS of apps.  Lots of them say FREE!  Yay!! Right???!?!

Nope.

With most of the apps I downloaded, you got one measly meditation for free…that’s it…ONE…really!?!?!! Grrrr….Ain’t nobody got $$$ for that!!! 😉

So I was getting a little disappointed with my options…Until…

SMILING MIND 🙂

Wooohooo!!

First off let me just say, it’s completely FREE!  No in-app purchases, no pay to unlock, nope, none of that! F-R-E-E, free.

Smiling Mind is a non-profit who’s goal is bringing mindfulness to ALL! This app was designed by psychologists & educators who are on a mission to bring mindfulness meditation to the Australian NATIONAL curriculum. Yes, national (A whole country full of mindful kids?  Sounds Awesome!).

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It is full of programs for everyone.  There are categories for kids, adults, classrooms, workplaces.  Whoever and wherever you are, you will find something here that fits.

There are also REMINDERS!  I love reminders.  (Even with them I tend to forget stuff…lots of stuff…) You can set the app up to remind you to meditate at certain times of day, or to remind you that you haven’t meditated in a certain time frame (1 day, 2 days, 1 week….it’s up to you).  I’ve set mine up to remind me if I’ve gone longer than 24hrs without meditating.  Although, I haven’t needed it thanks to Phoenix (he’s the youngest member of the Tribe).

 

Are We Going To Do Our Breathing Tonight?

I hear this EVERY night from my youngest, Phoenix.  We made the app part of our bedtime routine.  I love that they love to be mindful!!  It has made a difference in our bedtime routine!  After we do our short 5-10 minute guided meditation, the kids are relaxed, peaceful & ready to hit the hay!!!  Struggle-free bedtime??  Yes, please!! Sign me up!!!

Mindfulness is helping in their everyday lives as well.  They are finding ways to calm themselves, discovering emotions, making wishes,  appreciating the work their bodies do for them each day.  Spending those few minutes meditating at night brings us all more peace, and who doesn’t love peace?

So, what are you waiting for?

Check this app* out, and let me know what you think!!

*Smiling Mind also has a website.