Stopping a Downward Cycle

The casual everyday stress of your daily grind can really wear you down. Today, I can feel that it really can physically affect you, your emotional and mental state directly correlates to our bodies ability to function. If like me you are sensitive to the world, then these physical manifestation are even more dramatic. Skin rashes, nausea, insomnia and all of that resulting in worsening physical condition. The cycle spirals downwards, bringing out bad habits, bad eating, and seeking refuge in distracting – only adding to the the stress.

Stopping the cycle is difficult but I always go back to my first rule: DON’T PAAP. There is no need to panic. Be calm, be lekker, and chill for a second. Maybe have a cup of tea and a biscuit. Now use another great rule: Use what you got aka Pivot.

You got to use what you got to get what you want.

This is what it comes down to. There is something inside of you, something you have that can improve the situation you are in. You only need to stop for long enough to work out what the problem is and how to fix it.

Let’s stop and think about how to unpack a problem – most of the time when I am feeling crap, I don’t know why and it seems like there’s never the space to work it out. BUT this is what the tea and biscuit is for. SO now that you are sipping calmly, think about your emotions and your mental state. What are you really feeling – anxiety? Stress? Anger? Shame? Really understand the feeling, sometimes feelings hide underneath others, I know that I sometimes feel angry when what I am really feeling is panic and out of control and I mask it in anger and take it out on the world. Not Good.

Now that you have kind of unpacked your feelings, be honest with yourself and assess what is making you feel the way you feel. Sometimes you are going to unpack a much bigger problem but the solution will always need to come from you. Sometimes all you needed was the acknowledgement and sometimes you are going to have to be honest and say – oh this is just me shifting blame. The important bit here is to take ownership of those feelings. It doesn’t matter what the feeling is. It belongs to you. So own it.

And now that you own it, you can decide what to do. Action is power. Start with a list, write down everything you can do today to feel better. I can finish my assignment, I can visit my mother, etc. Then write down what you need to do over the next week, then the next month, then the next quarter, half a year and a year. Hopefully bt the time you get to a year you are going to start to realise that actually, things aren’t so bad and not that much must change and a little bit of work or attention or time today will help a whole lot in improving your emotional and mental state and getting out of a downward spiral.

Upwards and onwards we say.