Have you ever felt STUCK? You know, those times when you can’t catch a break, bad things are happening left and right, and it feels like you are just being sucked into quicksand. Maybe it feels like you are surrounded by muck, grime, goo, creepy bugs, hissing snakes, and every other kind of terrible thing. Sometimes life feels like you are stuck in a swamp.
I call it the Shrek syndrome.
You can’t even see what’s a few feet in front of you because your vision is so blurred from the negativity gnats flying around your head. I’ve been there before and I know it’s really easy to stay in that place… stuck and sinking further. I also know that it is possible to dredge your way out. How? Here is what worked for me…
We can’t ignore the stress in our lives but we can change the way we think about it.
When the Shrek syndrome comes on, approach the unpleasantness in a more positive and productive way. It’s not easy but the more you can turn your outlook around the faster you can get out of that nasty swamp.
I was able to stop being an Ogre when I started shining light on the things that hadn’t gone wrong… right down to the air that was filling my lungs. I know it may sound cheesy but it’s a PROVEN STRATGEY. Positive thinking has been linked to an increased life span, lower rates of depression, lower levels of distress and even greater resistance to the common cold.
Your homework: Choose at least one to try this week.
PRACTICAL WAYS TO SHINE LIGHT ON THE GOOD AND GET OUT OF THE SWAMP
Gratitude journal – daily, weekly or whatever – simply jot down the things for which you are thankful. Think… what if you woke up today with only the things you expressed gratitude for yesterday?
Positive Self Talk – We often say things about ourselves that we would never say to others. STOP DOING THAT! Place a positive affirmation somewhere that prompts you to read it out loud every day. My favorite? You are enough. And at the end of the day: You did enough. You deserve rest.
Keep a monthly log of accomplishments and hard efforts. Try a new vegetable? Jot it down! Meditate in a difficult situation. It goes in the log too! If you tried hard at something, regardless of whether you fully succeeded or not, that’s important. Both successes and efforts get credit here.
Change your perspective: Instead of saying, I’ve never done this before,” say “It’s an opportunity to learn something new.” Instead of saying, “It’s too complicated,” say “I’ll try from a different angle.”
What do you do to shake the Shrek syndrome??
