I’m no stranger to stress. In some ways, I thrived in stress, even though I hated it. It sounds crazy to crave the very thing you hate. But in some subconscious way, I would create stress if there wasn’t enough of it.
It sounds rather dramatic.
But I think we’re all subject to this. Living stuck in places we long to get out of because, in some way, they’ve become safe. They’ve become our home leading us to find stress when we feel like it’s missing.
Making us masters of our own misery.
But we know that stress is a leading culprit in the disease process. Throwing our bodies out of balance and neglecting the very essence of health inside of ourselves. That’s why this topic is so important and why I’m thankful to have stress-expert Trudy Stone on the podcast.
In this podcast, we dive into her guide to making stress work for you. Ending the co-dependent relationship with stress and helping you to create a life of thriving.
You are not your thoughts.
But I want you to know, you are not your thoughts. Just because you think it doesn’t make it true. This was another one of those big life lessons I had to learn and still grapple with from time to time.
Your thoughts are a conscious formulation of what you believe or have believed that creates a feeling leading to a reaction to every action.
Your thoughts also shape your beliefs – meaning if you think it repeatedly over time and find enough supporting evidence to make it true, you’ll believe it – even if it isn’t true.
You may have fat, but you are not fat.
Say, for instance, you’ve believed the lie, “I’m so fat.”
That thought stimulates an emotion (probably not a good one), creating a reaction to life (again, not good). But thoughts like this need supporting evidence. So not only do you think it, but you begin to act out of that.
- You eat the candy on your co-worker’s desk.
- You declare your workout useless.
- You get takeout because it’s pointless.
You self-sabotage in support of the thought that’s becoming the belief that you’re fat. And if you’re fat, you must maintain that, which means no matter how many behavior modifications you attempt, you’ll remain fat.
Phew!
But here’s the deal.
You are not your thoughts.
You may have fat, but that does not mean you are fat.
When it becomes a belief, you will act out of that creating your reality.
And there is a big difference. One becomes a belief. A foundation that you consistently and continuously cycle around. The other one states an observation that can be changed.
Believing something makes it more concrete – leaving you to justify everything you do around that belief.
In the case of this thought, keeping you stuck in a place you hate, simply because it’s become safe.
Your thoughts are a perspective of life, but they are not your life.
Your thoughts are a perspective of life, but they are not your life. And the way to see this is to develop the practice of diffusion. Learning how to step outside of your mind and become a witness looking inside your thoughts. It’s an external perspective of what is happening inside your brain.
Allowing yourself the space to become aware of what you’re thinking without the need to react to the thoughts.
A degree of separation known as diffusion takes the thought and allows you to process it through a series of questions helping you to determine if:
- Is the thought true or false?
- Does the thought serve you or keeps you stuck?
It’s a simple act of reframing that is truly as easy as it sounds.
How to reframe your mind.
When you feel like you’re in a cycle of overreacting or making actions that don’t serve you, understand what you’re thinking. Take a seat and acknowledge those thoughts but do not accept them.
Then reframe your mind to shift your attention to what is true. Keep repeating time and time and time again. Eventually, you’ll create new patterns based on truth. Creating thoughts that lead to healthy action bringing positive change.
Once you accept them, you act out of them. And when you justify them, you believe them.
Learn the practice of acknowledging your thoughts without accepting them and inserting truth to set you on a path of healthy action.
The guide to making stress work for you.
Take a moment to sit with your thoughts. Identify what you believe and asking how those beliefs help you?
Maybe you’ll learn that you are your own worst enemy and that chatter that happens inside of your head is leading to more problems than you’ve given credit.
Just as you’ve believed the negative, you can believe the positive. Creating rhythms and actions that support a healthy, vibrant, and energized body. Here are the steps to get started.
- Acknowledge what you’re thinking
- Understand why you’re thinking it
- Ask if it serves you
- Reframe that thought to something that does
- Keep your eyes fixated on the truth
DIG IN MORE WITH THIS FILL
Learn more about expert Trudy Stone at her website and on her podcast, The Mind Your Body Show.
Keep learning by checking out these helpful articles:
Health Made Simple – The One Place To Change the way you think to create positive change.
- Emotional Energy: Change How You Feel To Change How You Look
- 5 Ways to Create Space in Your Life
- Is Your Diet Plan the Reason You Can’t Get Healthy?
- 5 Small Daily Things to Change Your Habits for Good
