Change Your Mind for Good

There’s a lot of difficult stuff going on in our world right now, from mass shootings to California fires, political news, environmental disasters, abuse,  and more. I notice that if I dwell on it, I start feeing depressed, heart-broken, helpless and overwhelmed.  One thing that helps me is to remember that even when there’s a lot of darkness in the world, there’s always a lot of light as well.  And they’ve both ALWAYS been here, the dark and the light.  As long as we’ve been around, there has always been destruction and killing and disease.  And there has always been beauty and grace and love.  I don’t think this time is exceptionally different from others in that regards, though it may be closer to home….

The teachings of neuroscience remind us that what we put our attention on grows: ie. where ever we put more attention, we grow new neurons (brain cells) and neural pathways.   Areas with more neural pathways are more readily available for our attention;  the path is well-paved so we keep using it.  So if we think a lot of negative, despairing thoughts, we’re creating more neural pathways in that area of the brain thus making it more likely that we’ll continue thinking those kinds of thoughts!  But if we choose to focus on the good, we’ll grow new neurons there, and then we’ll more naturally tend to think positively.  Does this make sense?  This is neuroplasticity.  The brain is “plastic,” moldable, based on how we use it, just like our muscles.

This is Great news!!  It means we can cultivate a happier mind by feeding it uplifting thoughts.  I’m not suggesting that we deny or ignore the hardships of life.  In fact, what I like to do with those difficult feelings and thoughts is to really notice and Be with them.   And then I ask, “what can I do about this?”  Is there some action that I can take that can help?  (Donate clothes or make a phone call or sign a petition, etc.).  And if there’s not, then it may be more important simply to Be with the feelings that are here:  grief, sorrow, despair, anger, etc., and let them run their course.

But, what I think is unhelpful is continuing to worry about the future or complain about the present with thoughts like:  “I can’t believe how horrible this is!” Or “This should not be happening!” Or “Things are really going to pot.”   That only creates more distress, feeding the negative cycle.

Yoga has a similar view.  It invites us to cultivate higher states of Awareness by rooting out the confusion and ignorance that cause suffering, while generating feelings like love and compassion.  Ultimately, yogis endeavor to abide in the Essence Nature that is awake, present and at peace, beyond all thoughts, feelings and identities, and to recognize everything as Consciousness and Love, even that which appears “dark.”  So it’s a re-identification towards Truth instead of the stuff on the surface of life.  Not at all simple or easy, but truly transformational.  More on this later…

The other day, I was supporting a client who was scaring herself about the worst-case scenario of her situation.  As we explored together, she began to realize that she was unconsciously creating this stressful state of contraction.  And through the session, she started to brighten up as she saw new possibilities for how she could approach what she was facing.  She saw possibility instead of limitation.

Here’s a post I created for my Facebook Page the other day that speaks to this practice of taking action and focusing on the positive.

So it’s perfect that although there is a lot of despair and devastation right now, it’s also Thanksgiving time.  There is so much to be grateful for.  The more we practice gratitude, the more we change our brains towards feeling good.  And when we feel good, we’re more likely to Do good things in the world, even simple things like being more patient with our kids or kind to our partners.  So we can change our inner and outer world by changing our minds. 

Don’t you Think??

 I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.  Please leave a comment below!

Namasté,

Robyn

Feel free to contact me here if you have any questions or would like to set up a free consultation:  robyn@consciousthrivingrelationships.com

Have you seen my 3-Week Plan to up-leveling your relationship?  Sign up to get it here.

And check our our Women-only Facebook community for lots of extra support:  Healthy Relationships Sisterhood.

Here’s our Facebook Page for videos and tips:  https://www.facebook.com/ConsciousThrivingRelationships/