Celebrate Your Life….
Tell the truth. Do you have regrets? It would be most unusual if you didn’t. We all have experiences that we’d prefer to forget. We all carry the scars of regrettable events and unwise decisions. Perhaps these episodes of foolishness contributed to making us the individuals we think we are today. Yet these difficult moments often cast a lasting shadow over how we think and feel. Perhaps because of the emphasis we place on the painful events in our lives, we forget to acknowledge our strengths and achievements. The fact is that we’re heavily conditioned to respond to emotional pain rather than to happier events. Does that surprise you? Any form of discomfort could represent a potential threat to our safety and survival so, evolution kindly predisposed us from birth to be more aware of pain than of pleasure. This is why emotionally painful events resonate more deeply than times of celebration. Strange but true. Yet this innate bias creates an unbalanced view of who we are and results in a sacrifice of the warmth and confidence that accompany recollections of success in any part of our lives. How do we redress the balance?
On a physical level, it’s very helpful to relax the body and release any accumulated tension that’s associated with stress, anxiety, pain and disappointment. As you learn to let go of the muscle tension, you’ll feel an immediate change in how you think and feel. We’re hardwired to respond to our shoulder position. Opening and lowering the shoulders sends a clear signal to the brain to turn down the stress response and assume a calmer, clearer and more balanced perspective. Breathing deeply and slowly reinforces the change in mental and emotional activity. You’ll feel better in a matter of moments. This is an ideal moment to introduce a few minutes of mindfulness. This is an invitation to smile and reflect on all the wonderful things that have happened in your life. This is how you shift from worry to gratitude. You feel calmer, more confident about the future. If great things have happened in the past, they can happen in the days to come. Life no longer fills your nights and dreams with dread. Your smile reveals a newfound belief in your purpose. Life has meaning and you know that you are perfectly equipped to deal with whatever challenges you will meet along the way. Life is no longer an ordeal but a gift and an opportunity to thrive, flourish and express yourself completely. From this moment onwards, let each day of your life be a celebration.