You’re not alone, Courageous One. 

I feel like I’m always saying the line above but for some it bears repeating, especially for those whose paths are marked by challenges; those who are on roads less traveled (and not necessarily b/c it’s intended); those who feel a little different than others, a little bit on the outside you could say. It really can feel like you’re alone. But the key word is “feel”.

Feelings fluctuate all day long, moment to moment, day to day. Some feelings stay with us longer than others. Feelings follow our thoughts. If I’m being honest, the idea for writing this post came from my personal experience. This how-to post goes for me too! All this in mind, I want to reassure you: you’re not alone in the way you feel.

Question:

What’s going on for you right now? I mean, what’s happening in your life right now that’s got you down? Or maybe it’s more like what’s NOT happening that’s making life go sideways?

Take a moment to put your response into a sentence or two. Say it silently, say it out loud or write it down. 

💛 💛 💛 💛

Life is challenging you. I hear you. 

Yes. It does suck, it hurts and can be downright painful. What mountain before you must you climb? 

Do you question why you’re the one who has to climb? Do you doubt whether you can make it to the summit? Worried about how you’re going to get through this challenging time? Losing sleep at times? Are you working yourself up and burning out? 

If you can relate to any of this, give yourself a chance to breathe. Go on, take a deep breath … inhaling slowly. Hold your breath there for just a sec. Now, let go, slowly exhaling. 

I invite you to slow down for this moment in time and learn about:

5 WAYS YOU CAN KEEP YOUR SPIRITS UP WHEN LIFE COMES CRASHING DOWN.

The Obstacle Is The Path

zen proverb

1. One of the most important things to stick with is being vigilant about what you’re consuming, content-wise.

When you’re listening to the radio on your way to work pay attention to what you’re listening to. Is it helping you mentally to get your day started on the right foot? If it’s not helping to lift your spirit, change the channel or just turn it off and whistle or hum instead. 

When you’re taking a shower, put on a positive podcast, play your favorite empowering music or meditate on the act of cleanliness. 

Don’t get caught up in the news. I understand you want to be informed and stay abreast of the ongoing politics or your local community news, but when it starts to be something you do, day in and day out, mind this turning into a habit. 

If you’re getting into the latest news headlines regularly, visiting your favorite news outlets online, subscribing to news summaries delivered straight to your inbox, scrolling through your FB feed, picking up the newspaper, listening to talk radio all day … it’s time to switch it up. 

If you’re watching a lot of negative television, like crime shows or paranormal stuff, even mindless programming like reality tv, it’s time to switch it up.

What are you subscribing to or tuning into regularly that is less than uplifting, empowering or life-giving? 

I’ll be dead honest about my answer. Don’t you judge me. 😛 It’s those alien documentaries or the conspiracy theory ones, too. 😳 So easy to binge on and so bad for my vibe. I CUT IT. 

You know what it is that lowers your vibes and does not enhance your spirit. Give yourself a boost instead. CUT IT.

2. Get picky about who you’re spending time with and how you’re spending it.  

Let me ask you this: Who’re you hanging with? What’re you all doing? 

Hey look, I’m not trying to get all into your business, but as your friendly energy management guide, have you stopped to think about your quality time and how it affects your vibes? Your spirit?  

For example, are you hanging with peeps from work every week, on Zoom, having happy hours and dinner, talking about the same ole stuff — work, work and complaining about colleagues? That can’t be too uplifting. Sure, it’s social and may work to get your mind off things briefly, but alcohol consumption combined with complaining can do more numbing than it can to empower and lift your spirits. 

Maybe you’re hanging with your sister. She is your sis! Of course you adore her but have you been honest with yourself about how much of a spoiled brat she can be? She expects you to listen to her  woes but then interrupts and gets easily distracted when it’s time for you to share.

Honestly, you probably deserve more support than that, especially when your life feels like the world’s on your shoulders and you’re trying to keep your spirits up to meet your challenges. 

Instead of receiving empowerment or the light-hearted laughs you need, you’re getting bogged down in other people’s dramas. 

What? No. Just no. 

This is a good time to let sis know that you could really use some personal time to rest, relax and rejuvenate. Now that is some quality time. 

What if you’re hanging a lot with your family — your partner and your kids? 

Of course you’re hanging with them, that’s your pack. Maybe it looks something like:

You’re going out, doing shopping together, at home you’re watching the kids’ favorite shows (is there anything you want to watch?), you’re taking the family dog for walks (why are you the only one walking Pup?), you’re having lots of one-sided conversations with your Honey about all their happenings (wishing you could be felt, heard and understood a little more so right now).

There’s no doubt you belong to your pack but considering the challenges you’re facing right now, it’s a good idea to check in and ask yourself if the time you’re spending with them, including how you’re spending it, is the best thing for YOU right now.

Maybe you need to spend a little time away from them, intentionally doing something just for you. What does your intuition say you need?

3. Practice your spirituality. Get spiritual. 

I believe that spiritual wellness is the heart of wellness. So of course I think this one is essential. When life feel’s like a harsh dry desert, no doubt you’re thirsty. What you need most is refreshing water!

The refreshing water I speak of represents your spirituality. Your spirituality is the life-giving, ever-flowing well that lives within you and within all of us. It’s what makes us resilient. 

Our spirituality makes us resilient.

So here you are, a spiritual being having a human experience. And at the moment, your human experience is less than optimal, but the spiritual being in you isn’t bound by the same outward conditions.

Then how to draw from the life-giving ever flowing well that lives within?  

Get spiritual. Tap into your true nature! Practicing your true nature or practicing your spirituality will help you experience relief from the rough waves of life. It will provide you with refuge from harsh conditions. It will provide you with resilience for the weariness of the climb. 

What gives you life? What fills you up with love? What pumps sunshine through your body? 

Do you pray? Meditate or Journal? What do you do to draw inward? 

Approach those things like rituals and perform them with reverence. 

Then go to your heart and identify the feeling of gratitude. What are you grateful for? 

I used to have a really hard time identifying what gratitude felt like. Even now, it’s not an easy feeling for me to hold onto.  But at least I know what it feels like. This part is really important because when we’re experiencing a dry season (think lack or drought) in our lives, experiencing gratitude will redirect us to our true nature. In being able to identify the feeling of gratitude, we’re sure to be supported by the abundance of our true nature. Gratitude directs us, both in energy and focus, to the ever-flowing water within. It’s there that we find what we need in the moment. 

Despite what may be happening outside of us, when we intently practice our spirituality, our spirits are lifted! What’s happening around and outside of us doesn’t have to take bring us down. Commit to really trying to do this one. Notice the difference it makes.

4.  Make it a point to enjoy something, to laugh.

Do you find that your thoughts keep circling back to all the things that are going wrong right now? Is it hard to relax because you’re worried about things in this situation that you have no control over? Is it sometimes hard to concentrate on the present moment because in the back of your mind you feel anxious about the challenges before you? 

If you can relate then it’s time to trade that energy for more uplifting energy like … joy and delight.  😂 👍❤️✨

When we enjoy something, we’re taking pleasure in it. It’s giving us a feeling of happiness and satisfaction. 

Laughter is a kind of joy. Like pleasure, it makes us feel happiness. That’s why it’s a very good medicine for lightening a heavy load.

Don’t let the heaviness of your load steal the lightness of your being. Both coexist. Isn’t it true that in life there is suffering and joy? 

Then there are sun showers — a weather paradox, when it’s pouring rain and sunny at the same time. We marvel at this magical weather paradox which also happens to be a perfect recipe for rainbows! 🌈

Even when it feels like your light is being dimmed by troubles, you still have the ability to be bright. Like sun showers, you have magical rainbow producing abilities, too. The way to access that is to be * deliberate * about enjoying something every. single. day. 

One of the easiest ways to make sure that you do this is to tickle your funny bone. One of my favorite things to watch for a quick (and strategic) dose of laughter is the show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. The title alone makes me smile. 😁 Two of my favorite things in one sentence? And it’s on Netflix? Come on. That’s like a perfect recipe for a rainbow!

What’s something that you can turn to that’s practically guaranteed to make you laugh? What’s something simple and easy that you always enjoy? 

Use these things as necessary tools to keep you going and to keep your spirits up when it’s pouring. Be deliberate about them. 

5. Keep an open heart, keep love close.

Love is the highest frequency there is. So if you’re to keep your spirits up it makes a lot of sense to be in the frequency of love. Keeping your heart open means keeping this energy center open for love to flow. 

When we’re mostly in our analytical mind we’re over thinking. Over thinking usually ties up our energy in the past and the future. We’re thinking of stuff from earlier in the day or thinking too much about what’s going to happen a week from now. 

We’re not free to experience the spontaneity of the present moment. The more analytical thinking we’re engaged in (lots of prefrontal cortex processing) the less available we are to hang out in the present, just being and doing. We try to control what’s out of our control, causing more suffering. 

Meanwhile, hanging out in the present just being, just doing our thing makes it so much easier to feel love. We are in the flow. Our hearts are open and we are free. We can feel love freely, we have no qualms and we are okay at the present moment. 💖🧘🏽🤗🙏

Because our hearts are open, at any moment we can be in love. It hits you like, “Aww, just look at the adorable little puppy playfully walking with its owner, I love it.” Or when your heart melts as you spot an elderly couple holding hands. So sweet. 

Given life’s challenges right now, you know how easy it is to feel downtrodden. You could use some assurance and insurance. The assurance is love and the insurance is maintaining your heart connection. Even though you may feel emotions like resentment, bewilderment or feeling like a victim those feelings aren’t going to take over and stay. Love is too much of a greater force. When it is let in, it helps you stay afloat and keep your vibes high. ✨

I leave you with this, courageous friend: Consciously keep your heart open so that you allow the strongest, highest frequency, force of nature, * LOVE *, to flow through you and heal your situation. 

I have faith in you. 

I hope you found encouragement, support and how to keep your spirits up when life’s got you down. Just remember, this too shall pass Courageous One, because one thing’s for sure — everything in life is temporary. 

Until next time,

Be you & Be true…

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