It is so important to monitor what we tell ourselves if we care about how we feel. At any point, we can change negative self-talk and bring happiness to our experience. Here’s a recent example of this process in my own life, as I continue to heal from a head injury I sustained last spring, expressed in a poem entitled “Recovery.”
I tried to take myself to task,
brow beat, you dummy, you dope. I tried
to feel bad about overdoing it yesterday,
imagining the worst: You’ll never get well!
I tried to punish myself.
But I couldn’t. Those days are past,
sculpted in stone, set behind museum glass.
I am alive now. Love breathes me.
A daughter of trees, I am schooled by roots
and the quartz in their embrace. I lie down
on earth, trusting the weight of my head to her;
clouds fill my skull. I am free.
Here’s another way of saying it. In the medical memoir My Stroke of Insight by Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, she discusses how important it is to be aware of our thoughts about ourselves in order to have good mental health: “Regardless of the garden I have inherited, once I consciously take over the responsibility of tending my mind, I choose to nurture those circuits that I want to grow, and consciously prune back those circuits I prefer to live without” (186). Tending the garden of the brain is up to each and every one of us.
Your recent blogs on healing have underlined the importance of hearing, sensing and understanding our inner self. What a struggle that can be for many people, including those of us significantly affected by what happened to us before we were physically and mentally aware. But as you have mentioned several times, we can also beat ourselves up badly over recent events. Thank you for reminding us “to nurture those circuits that I want to grow, and consciously prune back those circuits I prefer to live without”. This is a continuing battle, but we have the weapons and it’s the only way to stay a winner.
Your recent blogs on healing have underlined the importance of hearing, sensing and understanding our inner self. What a struggle that can be for many people, including those of us significantly affected by what happened to us before we were physically and mentally aware. But as you have mentioned several times, we can also beat ourselves up badly over recent events. Thank you for reminding us “to nurture those circuits that I want to grow, and consciously prune back those circuits I prefer to live without”. This is a continuing battle, but we have the weapons and it’s the only way to stay a winner.
Yes, we sure do have the “weapons.” Many of us though succumb to our negative self-talk, especially when we are tired or stressed out. Those are the times to simply put on some uplifting music or take a warm, soothing bath or shower or go dancing. Once we move and laugh and feel good again, we can get back to transforming our self-talk. Truth be told, we are beautiful, wonderful creatures 24/7!
Yes, we sure do have the “weapons.” Many of us though succumb to our negative self-talk, especially when we are tired or stressed out. Those are the times to simply put on some uplifting music or take a warm, soothing bath or shower or go dancing. Once we move and laugh and feel good again, we can get back to transforming our self-talk. Truth be told, we are beautiful, wonderful creatures 24/7!
That is inspiring I love it!
I’m so glad!
That is inspiring I love it!
I’m so glad!