The simplest of things can save us from falling apart. Over-exposure to fear wounds and changes us. We become more sensitive, open to public waves of panic, despair and depression. You lose your power. Worse, you lose faith. But, you can get your power back with something meaningful to you. Things that you love, that cost little or nothing.
Creating a daily ritual has the power to heal. Consistent time out each day, even if it’s ten minutes, doing something you love makes a massive difference to the psyche. It is empowering and transformative, regardless of conditions. Liberating habits breed comfort and stability. Use them to your advantage.
Many will tell you that journaling will help you to dump toxic thoughts onto paper. And, it’s quite true and useful. Exercise is also beneficial for discharging pent-up energy and releasing stress. And, depending on your faith, prayer and daily gratitudes can be restorative to the mind, body and soul.
Finding a place of peace and calm in the centre of the storm is essential. This can be achieved in two ways. First, you can create a feeling of peacefulness each day by creating a daily ritual and time out. And, the second is to build within your own mind, a sanctuary that can be a place of inner peace, power and mental clarity in changing conditions.
Daily rituals: A path to inner peace.
In my own life, time is set aside each day to be still, to be present and unplug from people, cell phones and computers. I also make sure that I get some fresh air and reward myself with a wonderful cup of coffee. Just creating a consistent habit of a break from things, even ten minutes a day, allows you to re-set and find your power again.
Creating stability from a daily practice.
Daily ritual was/is a lifeline for me in difficult times. It continues to offer a sense of stability that I can count on every day no matter what is happening around me. While it might be argued that stepping away doesn’t solve the problem, it does make a massive difference to your mental state. It allows time to be fully present, to visualize and focus to make better decisions.
Rituals like afternoon tea in British culture are beyond tradition. These regular gatherings encourage you to take time out and reward yourself with a treat. Teatime also has great psychological power that heals and brings people back “home”. At least, for me, that seems to be true. Even though most of my family have died, a cup of coffee has become a powerful trigger that brings me back to the present moment and close to family.
Use what you love to create stability.
Everyone has something they love that can be used to re-set and heal. Music. Reading a book. Prayer. Preparing a meal. Gardening. Hiking in nature. A bath. Cuddling a pet. Choose something that allows you to take time out, even for a few minutes each day. It will place you in the eye of the storm and encourage you to shift toward a more peaceful state.
Meditation can on it’s own take some of the edge off of “fear” states. But if you are so distracted by your circumstances and What if’s?, it might be hard to calm down, to let your mind release the negative, fearful thoughts. Breathing methods can soothe anxiety. There are many approaches. Just experiment to find which one you like that works best for you.
Here is just one example: The Box method, used by meditation masters and Navy Seals. This technique acts as a stress reliever. It also enables greater mental concentration.
- Breathe in through your nose for the count of 4.
- Hold for the count of 4
- Exhale for the count of 4
- Hold for the count of 4
- repeat the cycle.
An Inner Sanctuary.
Beyond daily ritual, visualization can be used to create an inner sanctuary that is very powerful. Imagine a place you love, for example, a beach. You are laying in the sun and listening to the ocean waves. You feel relaxed and peaceful. Feel the towel underneath you and your toes digging into the warm sand. This is your own special sanctuary. How it looks and feels is entirely personal and belongs to you. This is a place of peace; a place of personal power.
Whenever you feel stressed or afraid, this sanctuary can be re-visited through the power of your own imagination. Visualize this place in your mind’s eye or close your eyes. Breathe for a minute, no matter where you are, and find yourself “literally at the beach” inside your mind’s inner sanctuary. Over time, it will get easier to shift your physiology and mindset to that peaceful state, regardless of pressure and the upheaval around you.
Use a simple time out to create stability in changing conditions. No matter what you love, soothing your mind from too much stress is a good thing. Let your own God-given imagination become an empowerment tool that moves you beyond your imagination to a place of inner peace.
Create a sanctuary within and without. A simple [liberating] habit each day as well as visualization can be healing and so incredibly powerful.
I created a “visual” meditation for mental clarity. Click, this LINK to listen to a sample on Sound Cloud or visit Store.
