Mood Shifter

This week I found myself anxiously worrying about several important things going on in my life. I couldn't stop myself from thinking about the worst-case scenario and could feel the anxiety building up in my body.

The leading cause was the vast 'unknown'. Normally this is our creative playground but when we're out of balance it can feel uninviting. I needed to know what is going to happen next and thought I wouldn't feel settled until the unknown had become 'known'.

The Fight or Flight response

When we find ourselves in this state and we've tried a couple of the many anxiety tools out there but our mind is too restless to focus on them for long enough, this means our body has become deeply invested in the ‘fight or flight’ response.

At the peak of my worry, it came to me to write a gratitude list. If nothing else, it would distract me from negative thinking for a few minutes. I listened to my inner guidance and wrote a list of everything I was grateful for, large and small. As I wrote I could feel things shifting. I stopped writing after 5 minutes and felt so much better. I had lifted my mood and changed my state.

How I shifted my mood

The tension in my abdomen had gone, my mind felt clear and I felt very present. When my thoughts naturally returned to the issue, there was a surprising acceptance of the situation as my attention shifted to a new, more positive outcome. All from just 5 minutes of gratitude!

How you can overcome worry too

If you're feeling worried about something and decide to give this a try, write your list rather than just think about it. The act of writing gets us out of our heads, engages our bodies and becomes a powerful point of focus. Write as many things as you can without thinking about time. I'm sure this simple process will work well for other emotions too.

Let me know how you get on! 💜✨

Namasté

Gwen x