Power of the mind

12/4/11
  
Have you ever stopped to think about the power of your mind? I don't think many of us stop to think very much on how any part of our bodies work. I know I haven't. Some of my exercises that I do in my workbook and with my therapist focus on that. It helps you pay attention to you. I have had a whole new appreciation for my body. For instance have you thought about how much load your feet carry everyday? They have a hard job. Or how much you use your hands to do everyday things. What would you do without them? Those things might be easy to think about. But what about the power of your mind? The way your mind works is more powerful than any other part of your body. Your mindset dictates your actions and thoughts. If your negative, your thoughts and actions will be negative. The same goes for positive. Have you stopped to think about how much that plays a role in your over all health? It's something to think about. I have been doing a lot of paying attention to myself. With the tragedy that was thrown my way, and the passing of my brother, it was easier to just sink in the awfulness of it. Working on your mind is hard. It takes so much work and constant practice. Anyone who has depression, anxiety disorders, anything like that, might think they are stuck. I know I certainly did. I felt crazy, and there was no hope of ever getting any better. Again I say, the power of the mind.... it can make or break you. So many behaviors are learned. Whether they are good or bad, they are learned. Our lives are so hard now. I remember when I was little how much simpler life was. And times where hard for our parents. But these days it's hard for everyone. Adults and kids alike. The world is very negative. Think about it. Do you hear very many good stories on the news? It's always about who robbed who, who killed who, what parents did to their own children. So we have been conditioned to see and hear (and focus) on negative things. You might not have even thought about it very much. Cartoons for kids are violent or just plain vulgar. Video games are the worst. You shoot people, rob people, it shows blood and gore and foul language. And everyone wants to know what is wrong with people these days. Or why kids have no respect for anything. It's the power of the mind. What you feed your mind is just as important as the food we put in our bodies. Our thoughts can be changed. You just have to feed your mind the right stuff. I have been so happy at the progress I have made. We still have crap to deal with. We always will. But the way we react to it can make it worse. I have been keeping a positive attitude and I feel less stressed. Our minds are constantly bombarded with stuff. Sometimes you just need 10 minutes of quiet. Do you ever just sit for 10 minutes with no television or radio? When things are quiet it helps you to be able to regroup. Positive thoughts and positive things help you feel more positive about life. I had to stop writing this today because I got a phone call, and I needed to clean the house. While I was cleaning my mind was running. It went to my children who died. I focused on that for who knows how long. I was cleaning and thinking. Then it got to bad stuff. Things that I have felt guilty about ( which weren't my doing). But the same kind of thoughts that bring me down and keep me there. If I would have let it, those thoughts would have definitely ruined my day. I had to rise above my own self. I said to myself, you can't go there. Don't do this Wendy, change your mindset. I did. I just emptied my mind. See I could have let my mind run away to the dark side. But I had to feed it something good. Which ended up being the laughter of my two kids playing in their room. I hope that some of you reading will think about that. Changing our minds ( thought patterns) takes a lot of practice. I'm still working on it myself. But I find the rewards are a step towards inner peace. I'm in a good place right now. How long will that last? I don't know. We don't know what tomorrow will bring. We have right now. And right now I'm good. I am discovering myself. And for the first time in my life, I like me. I'm not a victim, I'm a survivor!!!!

Thought for today.........
Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you; they are supposed to help you discover who you are.