How do you get out of your own head when you’re in fear and/or pain, and your brain’s job is to focus on the struggle to try to keep you safe?
As I hobbled down the path with sciatic pain radiating down my leg this morning at 6 am (pain that I’ve been in daily for the last 5 weeks), I was acutely aware of wanting to express my usual gratitude for life, but what came up is ‘Am I really grateful for another day of pain?’
It would have been easy for me to go down the negative spiral of focusing on the struggle and what’s wrong. A spiral that leads to feeling disempowered, left wishing and hoping that I heal or my fear subsides.
In that moment I became aware of how difficult it can be to get out of our own head when you’re in chronic pain. I was able to shift to generating feelings of gratitude and start focusing, and taking action toward the positive and healing.
Here’s the strategy that I’m practicing, and it may help you get out of your own head too.
Be Aware
The first step is to become aware that your brain is focusing and ruminating on the struggle. Notice it, and recognize that it’s what your brain is designed to do. When you become aware of the pattern you’re able to choose out of it. It’s not easy to be stronger than your brain patterns, but it’s possible, and necessary if you want to move toward your goal or the outcome you desire.
Lean into the hard
Leaning into the hard is different than ruminating on it. One leads toward a path of empowerment, while the other leads down the path of disempowerment.
When you lean in, you accept what’s happening – the fear or the pain – and you stop wishing and hoping it will go away. Instead, you accept what’s happening and you choose to lean into the challenge of becoming stronger than your brain patterns.
This morning, my first attempt at switching from focusing on the pain to feeling gratitude for my life felt very blah. It wasn’t an immediate shift. I had to lean in and continue to repeat gratitude, and what I want to feel in my body: complete healing, freedom and strength.
As I continued to shift my focus, I also felt a shift in my body as I continued walking. My body was warming up and so was my mind. Just like you warm up for paddling, it’s important to warm up your mind to take on an empowered mindset in the face of pain, struggle and fear.
Hard moves in easy water
You absolutely can shift your mindset and do this practice when you’re already in pain and fear, it’s just way harder to do than if you have been practicing when everything was good.
Just like making Class III moves in Class III whitewater is much easier if you’ve been practicing Class III moves in Class II water over a period of time.
If you practice a mental warm-up of gratitude and being stronger than your brain patterns on a daily basis when things are good, then you will be much more skilled when you find yourself struggling.
The practice of gratitude and focusing on how you want to feel will enhance your life when it’s easy and when it’s hard. So why not incorporate it as a daily habit?
I actually got to practice it again later today when this blog post (the first finished version) got deleted because the internet went out and wordpress hadn’t saved it. Yay… more practice… :)
If you want to take on the practice of being stronger than your brain patterns, but you’re not sure where to start, or how to sustain, join my 7-day Boundary Bootcamp challenge coming up July 20-26. It’s free to members of the Mind Body Paddle Community.
If you join before the 20th you’ll get to join the challenge and be part of an amazing and supportive group of women paddlers.
CLICK HERE to join the Mind Body Paddle Community
