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The human brain is wired not to thrive but to survive. It's called the caveman mentality. We gravitate toward negativity, threat, and even danger — because we want to protect ourselves. We are drawn to bash, argue, and prove ourselves in order to survive this dog-eat-dog world. And it doesn't mean that all this is articulated. It can be just self-talk happening in some corner of our brain.
So how do we take care of our wellness when our mind is exposed to people and situations that tear us down? How do we take care of our wellness when we have co-workers whose past time is all about parroting the negative things that they see and hear around them? How do we take care of our wellness, when our work entails a lot of pressure day in and day out?
This Easter Sunday was our first public event on our nature wellness farm in Batangas. We were fully booked! We had to turn down a number of interested guests. We were all ecstatic with the marketing results the night before. However, with the unexpected drastic change in the weather forecast, the stress level peaked behind the scenes — controlled and uncontrolled boo-boos came about.
When unfortunate things like this happen, it is when I observe how my team expends their energy. Is it towards the problem or the solution? How are they behaving or misbehaving? What's their level of self, social, and situational awareness? How are they protecting themselves from going out of control?
Here are simple steps to follow to keep ourselves centered when facing stressors may they be people or situations:
Identify the problem and the root cause
Accept the person and/or the situation
Bring yourself to the awareness of how you are reacting
Power up! Step back if needed and regain your composure by doing some breathwork
Make sure that you are in your proper frame of mind before diving into the problem
Troubleshoot! Know that you can handle it
After everything has been said and done, give yourself a pat on the back, spend some quiet time with yourself and assess how things went
Learn from the situation, reboot, and smile
We all go through a lot of stress every day. If we allow our minds to dwell in this negative space, it will eventually impact our health and happiness.
Two decades ago, I remember my husband kept on nagging me to start a fitness regimen. But instead of hitting the gym, I would pop a slimming pill in my mouth in order to shed some fats every time I felt my pants getting tight. Until one day, I discovered that the pill that I was taking contained amphetamines.
There is absolutely no shortcut when it comes to wellness. More so, it's a never-ending process. We need to take care of ourselves day in and day out if we want to live a happy and successful life.
The pandemic made it even more challenging. It presented that our health is not fully in the palm of our hands. One day we're running the marathon; the next day we can find ourselves in a hospital bed. But let's not focus on things that we cannot control.
Prevention is still better than cure!
Let's not wait for covid to hit our immune system before we start thinking of doing a bit of cardio every day. Let's be mindful of our sugar and saturated fat intake before our doctor starts prescribing maintenance meds. Let's stop smoking before we realize that the big C has rented out a space in our lungs.
The pandemic is quite over. Do not forget the lessons it has taught us — especially when it comes to taking care of our well-being. Let's turn the Covid years into an unforgettable teachable moment for us to live a longer and more meaningful life.
Have you recently been experiencing a major downer? Do you believe that what you've been working on has lost its significance? It's fine and understandable if you feel this way. There are times when we feel like life is getting stale, and we're just going through the motions.
Some things happen when we least expect them. Life is a balancing act — and a challenging one.
Practicing wellness allows us to give ourselves perks that make our lives more balanced and healthier. Aside from its physical benefits, we also create a better and safer mindspace for ourselves.
In what ways can we push ourselves from whining to winning wellness?
1. ) Be in control
Wellness has no set deadline. It’s up to us where we want to go and at which pace. It’s more focused on how we thread on the journey and the checkpoints we make along the way.
2. ) Understand our limits
We understand that too much is bad for us. Saying “yes” to almost everything can weigh us down. There is no harm in expressing “no”. We have to take care of ourselves well. No need to compromise ourselves just to please people all the time.
3. ) Develop gratitude
Have you noticed that thanking people always goes first during winning speeches? Showing gratitude never goes out of style. We bring more smiles around when we give credit where it is due.
4. ) Understand that help is always available
Some of us may feel reluctant to ask for help. If we self-reject ourselves from finding help, we might be unable to find it at all. There is no shame in asking and discovering things with the aid of others.
For a winning mindset, there should be a willing heart. A willing heart will guide us towards the change we want to see ourselves in. Let’s harness the power within us, and believe that we can win every challenge life gives us.
