Hi friend,
If there is one word I would recommend to definitely have in your self-care toolbox it is the word "Pause".
Pausing allows us to reset our thoughts and come back into our bodies. It pulls us out of our head-space allowing us to stop and think before we react. This way we don't wind up doing or saying something we don't really want to do or say or leaving us with regret.
This practice of pausing gives us a moment to feel our emotions instead of ignoring them or pushing them down. When we ignore or push our feelings down they remained stored in our body and eventually will resurface reeking havoc. Hello bellyaches and headaches.
So when do you "pause"?
When you are angry.
When you are sad.
When you are overwhelmed.
When you overly excited.
When you lose focus.
Basically you can pause when you are feeling any emotion!
So how do you pause?
Find awareness that you are not feeling aligned and an emotion is taking over.
If comfortable close your eyes or move to a new space preferably looking out of a window or stepping outside. (Nature is very healing!)
If comfortable place your hand on your heart.
Inhale deeply through your nose.
Exhale deeply through your mouth.
If you can't seem to get out of your head-space say "inhale" as you inhale and "exhale" as you exhale.
Repeat this breath until you feel your body and head-space begin to relax and calm down.
Once you are relaxed and calm ask yourself what is this emotion trying to tell me.
The 8th step is important because most of the time when we are experiencing a moment that we need to pause it is because whatever is causing the current emotion has triggered a traumatic experience within us and we have yet to heal that trauma. Becoming self-aware of those triggers is very important in healing that trauma.
I hope this helps you on your journey to A Healthy and Happy You!
Until next time,
Chrissy Kohut
Self-Care Specialist
chrissy@ahealthyandhappyyou.com
