Sitting Quietly – Thoughts to Consider When Distressed…

This exercise is about self-support, a self-care practice that may be engaged in those particular times of difficulty, when something very distressful has occurred or a darker mood has come upon us. That experiencing of and getting through such times of dark, painful, or difficult situation is an inevitable part of what life brings. So…

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1.   Bring your focus to the breath (pause for a few moments, take some number of breaths)…and now acknowledge, “I’m in a tough place right now…” (again, pause…)
   
   
2.   “…but…I’m in it…I have little choice but to own it…so, what to do…” (pause…)
   
   
3.   First spend some time with the feeling, with the distress; try not to run from it, but instead engage with those feelings:

• • • …for as much or as long as you want…
      
      
    • …allow them to be there…
      
      
    • …make space for them…
      
      
    • …feel them rage or whorl; whine or whimper…try not to fight it – try to just let it be…and ride it through…
      
      
    • …cry if it helps, laugh if it helps, curse if it helps…
      
      
    • …but stay with them for a while, OR maybe only as long as you “can stand it”…
      
      
    • …and then start to…

4.   “Think about and consider”:

• • • You’ve been through difficulty and distress in the past…so it may be helpful to recall, if you can, what’s worked before. (pause…)
      
      
    • Realize too…that diversion, not as, but as part of, the strategy in getting through this, is more than okay… (pause…)
      
      
    • This may also be a critical time for constructive – as in positive – self-talk… This may not be easy…but it does make a difference. Counter negative rumination with more realistic and encouraging inner dialog… (pause…)
      
      
    • Usually in moments like this, it’s hard to remember but, “Problems and pain may just be an opportunity…” and, if this is one, you know that, on the far side, you will be stronger…and better…for having gone through it. (pause…)
      
      
    • Recall also that we humans are extraordinarily sensitive to changes in the conditions of our life, as in now with such distress; but also that we adapt…inevitably…over time…to come back again to a familiar baseline of calm, confident purpose and expectation… And this will most likely happen whether we want it to or not– and for that, thank goodness. (pause…)

When you’re ready, gently open your eyes and, with humble acknowledgment of your strength and resolve, step more determined than ever into the rest of your day…