Soul sings every little thing gonna be alright

my soul sings every little thing gonna be alrightIt’s amazing how if you open your mind and allow your spirit to expand your soul speaks.

I have woke up for the last week, maybe two, singing Bob Marley’s, “Every little thing gonna be alright.”  It’s amazing how if you open your mind and allow your spirit to expand your soul speaks.

I have a lot of pretty intense things going on in my world. I’ve always been a pretty good stuffer. Stuff it, keep your head down and plow through. Alcohol was extremely effective in achieving this level of stuffing.

That strategy can get you through, but eventually, you will hit a wall.

What I had not realized until writing this morning is, I have stopped watching my regular smut tv and started listening to inspiring and uplifting books. I started running again. I started organizing my office and writing like crazy.

These at one time were things I would have to be intentional about and have an end goal. Listening to a book because I want to learn something specific; running because I’m training for a race or trying to hit my weekly miles; organizing my office because – it’s out of control. I had no end game this time.

My soul took over.

I have a couple of close family members currently going through cancer treatment. One of them a second bout with lung cancer. I have experienced a bit of a betrayal in the last week. And a few other emotionally charged events.

It was a wild epiphany to know just as I had used alcohol to medicate stress in the past; my subconscious has these auto-pilot coping strategies that hi-jack my life and keep me healthy. I have replaced a habit that would compound the problem with habits that continue to move me forward.

I have used many of these activities as ways to get through pain before but never have I been so oblivious to the process. It’s cool on one hand, and kind of a heads up that I’m not as present as I try to be.

When you’re going through a storm how do you cope?
Is your coping strategy helping or hurting you?
What needs to change?

Just because you struggle with alcohol (or any other vice), it doesn’t make you alcoholic (or addict). Sometimes we just need to create new coping strategies and practice them enough to replace a harmful habit.

I’m always available for a chat to discuss how together you can learn to LetGo2TakeCharge

Click here to schedule a time to talk.

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Practice being still instead of using alcohol

be stillPractice being still was a hard lesson for me to learn. From as far back as I can remember life was a rush. Rush to school, rush to play, rush to work, rush to promote, rush to fall in love. I even rushed to motherhood. Practice being still can help avoid alcohol misuse that can lead to abuse and beyond.

Imagine a bike speeding along. Going as fast as it can and it hits a rock – disaster, right? That’s the equivalent to going through life as fast as you can.  Only when I hit the rock, it seemed to happen in slow motion over the course of a few years. While trying to keep the momentum, I was making one bad decision after another. When I finally skidded to a halt, I was battered, beaten, and nearly broken.

Can you see the manic circle this creates?

When you are in a state of rush and trying to keep your head above water, it’s not unlikely you look for some relief. Alcohol gave me that quiet time I not only craved, but in my 30’s so badly needed. Only when you set your life up to go fast and hard, it becomes a habit, and it doesn’t feel normal to do differently. Can you see the manic circle this creates?

Stillness can be a laughable and a hella scary proposition. We all know what thoughts seem to haunt us, and it’s not the ones that remind us of our brilliance, beauty, and acts of kindness in the world.

I want to offer you a couple of tips to start practicing stillness in your life. Especially, if you’re thoughts are spinning out, and you are using alcohol to quiet the chaos.

Tips to start a practice of stillness and reduce the need for alcohol:

  • Start with just 2-5 mins.
  • Shut all influences from the outside world down.
  • Create a short mantra to repeat to yourself when ugliness comes for a visit. Something like – This is my quiet time to soothe and heal. Don’t fight the ugly win it over with beauty and grace.
  • Don’t make a bunch of rules.
  • Don’t expect anything from it – just gift yourself the moment.

It will take practice, and chances are this is just a step in a system of solutions for you. But it’s a good way to create momentary peace and enjoy a bit of calm.

If you would like to work together on creating a strategy overcoming your struggle click here to schedule a time to talk.

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