Barbara Schmidt's Blog, page 10

What I’ve Learned About Making Mistakes

Dear friends,

I’ve found that there’s a really interesting aspect about being on a path towards self-improvement: we try really hard to get clear, grounded, and aligned, but we often forget that part of being a human being means that we are going to mess up and make the “wrong” choices. Sometimes we can have all the right answers in front of us, and still make mistakes.

I’ve never thought of myself as a perfectionist, until recently, when I made a handful of subpar life choices, and found myself very deep in self-judgment and punishment. In my mind, I felt that I should be better than that, I’ve worked on myself, and so, I assumed I might not ever make a mistake or take a misstep again.

Which is simply setting myself up for failure and unnecessary heartache.

Just because we cultivate clarity and alignment doesn’t mean that we are always going to act accordingly, and that’s okay; our humanness is always okay.

As I’ve been unravelling some of the errors in judgment I’ve made over the past few months, it has been a full time job to remember, not to pile on to the anxiety that I felt for making the mistakes; not to make my life more uncomfortable by being extra hard on myself. I had to remember that it doesn’t do me any good to punish myself even more than the natural consequences that unfolded for acting out of my own best interests.

When we are fully in the midst of difficult consequences it can feel like we’ll never get out of our own self-induced pressure cooker. What’s helpful to remember is that everything passes, no feelings are permanent, and that we can always right our wrongs through thoughtful action and changed behavior.

I truly believe that life presents us with diverse experiences, opportunities, and yes, hardships. I trust that whatever is placed on my path, I can handle, and that even when I choose out of my own best interest, my self-awareness and commitment to growth can assist me through anything with grace and a little bit of grit.

We are not perfect human beings, so it’s fruitless to expect that we will act perfectly. The beautiful lesson of mistakes or missteps is the grace that we can bring upon ourselves to know that forgiveness is always possible, growth is always happening, and our story doesn’t end when we take a misaligned turn.

If you’re going through something that makes you feel like you’ve messed it all up, forgive yourself, be present to your feelings, and allow yourself the space to move through what life has presented to you without your own self-judgment. Remember, the personal, inner work we do for ourselves gives us the strength and wisdom to maneuver through whatever life choices we make. Cultivate the awareness to see the lessons that are at the surface and know that in every single present moment, we have the opportunity to choose again.

xo,Michelle

The post What I’ve Learned About Making Mistakes appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

5 Reminders for Managing Judgment

Hi dear friends,

For many years I’ve been in a self-study of sorts on the topic of judgment. Long ago, a teacher of mine tasked me with the practice of simply noticing the moments where I engaged in judgment. As someone who believes so strongly in my own kind-hearted nature, I was stunned to witness that the judgment that I also hold permeates into every faction of my life. This was eye-opening. Even though it has been years, I came to this stark realization; I still struggle with the concept of judgment, and more so, the judgment I subsequently have because of my own judgmental nature.

So I have been reflecting on what I think this all means, and how to begin to transform it into something that can make life feel a little more free and light. The truth about judgment is, it’s extremely heavy.

For me, judgment is the act of holding negative and critical views or opinions of someone or something. Usually, it’s a knee-jerk reaction, with heightened emotion. Judgment tends to look like stories we write about other people, comparisons we make, and often times, criticisms that aren’t based on truth or facts.

For me, judgment often looks like:

“Ugh, I can’t believe that person just did that, what are they thinking!”

“Wow, I would never in a million years do that, they must be a terrible person”

“Only a bad person would believe that”

“Ew, that looks so bad”

As you can see, this sampling of some of my own judgmental thoughts are negative and highly critical in nature. I’ve thought these things about people I don’t even know, people I love, and even about myself. Judgment doesn’t discriminate, but the foundational through-line is that it tears someone or something down, in order to lift someone or something up.

It’s an illusion of being better than that person or thing that we are judging.

The thing about judgment is that it’s really not productive or inspiring or motivational. It’s really just an energy drain. I feel worse when I’m extra judgmental. I feel more unhappy, agitated, and anxious. And I know so many of us feel the same way.

The tricky thing about judgment is that it’s extremely hard to stop, it’s so embedded in our nature, our culture, our society. I used to think that it was possible to eliminate judgmental thinking, but after all this time, I’m not so sure that’s possible. I do think, though, that we can start to train ourselves to be less engaged with it. To be aware of the judgments, and choose differently. To nip it all in the bud, rather than letting it fester.

Ultimately, minimizing judgment will help us to move closer to where we want to be. Take a moment to think about how much time, effort, and energy you spend in judgment: being concerned with what’s wrong with other people and other things, harboring in that hostile energy. The truth is, hating on other people and things won’t help us thrive, but rather keep us stuck in a loop of self-sabotage. We don’t have to live in the judgment. It can be a role in our lives, but not the main character.

I know that I’m throwing a lot at you on such a heavy and oftentimes confusing topic, so I want to leave you with some simple reminders when you start to examine judgment in your life. Remember that this is something that we all experience, if this resonates with you, this does not make you a bad person, but rather, provides such a beautiful opportunity for growth and peace.

Remember that judgment stems from stories and opinions that we’ve told ourselves. Oftentimes it’s not true, kind, or productive. When faced with a judgment, talk back to it with something that’s true, and redirect your mind to something that’s useful for you in your own life.Remember that we all live life through a completely unique lens. Other people may not view the same scene like you do. Other people haven’t had the same experiences that you have had.Remember that sometimes, the judgments that we hold about other people really are none of our business. It’s easier to critique someone else’s life and patterns than to focus inward on ourselves. But it’s the turning of the mirror and our own self-work that will help us grow into the best version of ourselves.Remember that sometimes the harshest judgments are not about others, but about ourselves. Release the need to compare who you are with the rest of the world. You are unique and perfect as you are.Remember that taking action is a beautiful way to move through anything in life. If faced with judgment that won’t dissipate, ask yourself what aligned action you can take to help shift the situation, and help bring you back to peace.

xo, Michelle

The post 5 Reminders for Managing Judgment appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

How I Learned to Belong

My dear friends,

I have been trying really hard to pinpoint when exactly it was that I felt like I had to fit in or belong somewhere. To be honest, I can’t remember the starting point. It’s a feeling though, that seems like it has been within me my whole life.

Though I can’t remember the very first moment or situation that sparked a sense of needing to belong within me, I can vividly recall the many instances where I yearned to belong, and how it felt to fall short: the disappointment, discomfort, and frustration. It truly is painful to feel like you don’t belong: I often imagine it like a bird flying in the sky, searching for somewhere to land, but never finding a safe place to come down to earth.

It’s a frantic, desperate energy, that feels pretty lonely, too, and yet I’m confident that we all feel this way at one point or another. We crave belonging, we all yearn to feel like we have a place in life, somewhere that we fit in, no matter what. An unconditional safety net, a save haven, a forever home. The place where we can land at any time.

If you had asked me several years ago, how I would define “belonging”, it would have been an externally focused definition. Belonging is your social circle, your workplace, your religion. It’s how you match up to societal norms, your appearance, how you rate on the “normal” scale; all the boxes you tick in life. Belonging to me was blending in, being accepted, and loved.

This definition caused me to spend a majority of my life craving this external belonging, via groups of people, social status, education, and popularity. I felt that I had to be constantly changing myself to fit my surroundings, and was forever on alert for when I needed to pivot and make changes to fit in.

I was a very shy but strong-minded, introspective child who was very okay with being alone (I am a Scorpio after all). I liked having friends and spending time with them, but didn’t feel like I needed to be social, all the time. If left to my own devices, I would probably seek social circumstances when called to, but likely wouldn’t feel it was a priority. Somewhere, I picked up the belief that being social meant being cool and accepted, the more friends you had, the better. I began to forego my own personal preferences, and constantly sought out social circumstances. I disavowed my true nature, for the sake of external belonging, and so I spent many years of life choosing unaligned social circumstances, just for the sake of “fitting in”. This is just one example in my own life! We all have many different ways that we seek belonging, and go against the grain of who we are, to fill that void.

No amount of changing, adjusting, and camouflaging actually brought me the belonging I craved. It just made me feel more lost, disconnected, and alone. After years of frustration, confusion, and heartache, I realized that something had to change. I had to alter my course, take a look at what belonging really meant to me, and redefine it.

Belonging, to me, is no longer an external desire, but an internal foundation that I cultivate on a daily basis. My quest for belonging is now finding a safe haven, and a solid home in myself. It’s a curiosity, a remembering, and a deep knowing, of who I really am and what I really want.

I have spent so much time with myself, getting to know my real self, my deepest desires, values, dreams, and beliefs. I made myself, my wellbeing, and my relationship to both, a priority. I uncovered things about me, learned, and remembered. I learned to love myself, to treat myself with respect, and to honor my place in the world. I created that “safe little landing space” inside myself, knowing that I am always home when I am connected with me.

From that strong place within, I feel a sense of ease and peace on the outside. I feel a holistic belonging that is aligned with exactly who I am. The deep knowing of who I am and what I want, gives me the clarity to make life decisions, the confidence to say no to people and places that aren’t in alignment with my values, and the certainty to know that when life is lived from this place of awareness, I’ll never be forgotten or left behind.

My heart is at ease knowing that belonging doesn’t have to be something that I seek ever again, as long as I remember that I will always belong to myself.

xo, Michelle

The post How I Learned to Belong appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

4 Reminders When Managing Grief

My dear friends,

A few years ago I felt pulled to write a blog about my grief surrounding the unexpected death of my dad. It’s one of my favorite blog posts to date because oddly enough, I like to talk about grief. It’s been almost 15 years since my dad passed away, and if there’s anything I’ve learned in those 15 years is that grief doesn’t go away.  And I would never want it to. I hold my grief close because it serves as a tether to the past and to what is no longer, and though the feelings of grief are not always easy for me to process, they remind me that ultimately the pain stems from a love that simply shifted form.

I wrote my old blog on grief (click here to read it) around Easter time, so it makes a lot of sense that I’m writing this one now. I always think of my dad at this time; we spent so much time together at Easter. This is a time of year that I feel his presence even more.

No one goes through life untouched by grief, but we just never know when it will enter our lives. In some ways, I feel immense  gratitude for these years, since his death, to form a stable relationship with my grief. I am well-versed in it, but I know that there are so many at this time who are new to the overwhelming pain and loss.

This week, I want to touch on some hopefully helpful suggestions, when managing grief. I offer these reminders from my own personal experience,

Release yourself from any timeline. I used to think that I had exactly one year to grieve. As that one-year mark approached, I felt so much shame that I wasn’t “over” my loss. Letting myself out of a timeline let me off the hook. It allowed me to grieve in my own way and in my own time.Remember that no feeling is ever final. What might feel insurmountable in this moment will shift, eventually. While I don’t necessarily agree that time heals wounds, I do think that as time passes our wounds begin to transform. Feelings are never stagnant, and I often find hope in knowing that each new moment provides an opportunity for transformation.You don’t have to explain or apologize for your sadness. Allow yourself to be messy in your grieving if that’s what you feel called to do. No one is owed an explanation for your emotions, especially when you’re processing sadness and deep loss.Ask for help when it feels too much. There is so much benefit to be found when you have the courage to ask for support. I relied heavily on my therapist and my closest friends and family during my deepest moments of grief, and still do to this day.

If you’re struggling with grief and loss, please know that you are not alone. Sending hugs to whoever may need them.

xo, Michelle

The post 4 Reminders When Managing Grief appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

7 Affirmations for Difficult Times

Hi my friends,

I hope this week has brought you some unexpected smiles and some slivers of joy even during difficult times.

It can feel really challenging when we are continuously bogged down in the “negative” to find the glimmers of hope and positivity. We never know what life will throw our way, and in these turbulent times, it feels like life is really throwing us a lot of difficulty to handle.

I love to provide practical tools that can actually help you feel better. I would love for you to feel at least 1% better this week. And knowing that I cannot control anything that happens externally in this world, I know that we can start to feel the tiny percentages uptick when we go deeper within.

I’m not going to lie to you, so I’ll admit that my mind has been completely all over the place these past few weeks. It’s been dark and negative and very doom and gloom. And it’s interesting to witness these thoughts, because what I know to be true is that like attracts like, and these dark and scary thoughts multiply if they go unchecked.

As we know, the thoughts that we repeatedly tell ourselves shape our reality. We, ourselves, can influence how we view the world, how we react to the world, and how we show up in the world, we just have to create the space to allow ourselves to choose thoughts that are in alignment with our highest ideals.

You most likely know, one of my favorite practices to bring my mind back to equilibrium is to repeat positive affirmations. I have truly been relying heavily on my affirmations to propel me through the difficult moments. Though the repetitions don’t change a situation or circumstance, they do re-frame, ultimately change how I view things.

Affirmations shift my mood. They attract the positive thoughts that move me into a happier, more productive place. And feeling more upbeat and motivated is good for all of us.

Today, I’m sharing a few of the affirmations that have been serving me well these weeks, you can find them below, and I encourage you to come up with ones that really resonate with you. When you speak them to yourself, I hope you can believe them, feel them deep in your soul, and even if they don’t ring 100% true for you in this moment, allow them to serve as a guide point, a goal, or something to look forward to, knowing that this repetitive practice will bring you the ultimate result you deeply desire.

I love my resiliency and my adaptability  (This one is one of those “goal” affirmations. I feel it about 50% and the repetition allows me to act as if!)

I am strong, confident, and capable

I take everything one moment at a time

I am loved, supported, and cared for always (I love to repeat this affirmation in moments where I feel a lack in love, support, and care, because even if I feel unloved and abandoned, reminding myself that above all else, I am here for me, always gives me comfort and relief).

I am doing my best, and my best is always enough

What is meant for me will not pass me

I am at peace, I trust the timing of my life

If you feel called, I’d love to hear what affirmations you’re using to bring some happiness, positivity, and calm into your lives, during these stressful days. Share your inspiration in the comments below.

xo, Michelle

The post 7 Affirmations for Difficult Times appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

5 Reminders When Cultivating Confidence

Hi my friends,

For most of my life, whenever asked about what human qualities I’d like to embody, confidence has always been at the top of the list. When I was younger, I would often look on with envy, at the people around me, and in the public eye, who seemingly emanated confidence. For me, confidence is the energy you bring to any situation, and the deeply held belief that you are enough and you are worthy. Of course, both of these ideals aren’t always the easiest to latch on to, so it’s very easy for all of us to lose our sense of confidence over time.

Just like with so many other things in life, I believe that confidence is a practice and something that we can cultivate and strengthen if we desire. I don’t think that there are people who are born with it and without it, but rather the ones who make a concentrated effort to immerse it in their being, and believe.

These days, it’s easy for our confidence to be rocked moment to moment. With social media and societal standards and pressures, it can feel like we are always comparing and competing with others.

This week I wanted to provide you all with some reminders that I hope will be a great help for you to tap into the confidence that lives inside us all. Below are some gentle little nudges that have helped me along the way, I believe they can be helpful for you, too!

Your path is unique. I really believe that every single person on this earth is here for a reason, and has a unique path. With this being true, it’s useless to compare yourself to someone else and their own unique path. Find confidence in knowing that your journey is just for you, and it doesn’t have to make sense to other people. Talk to yourself like you love yourself. We are the only ones that spend 24/7 inside our own minds. What kind of environment are we creating for ourselves? Confidence won’t grow from negative self-talk, but you can start to be your own hype person. You deserve the same kind of love you give to others. Set the intention to become your own best friend.Take inventory of your strengths. Just like everyone has their own path, we all have our own strengths. How often do you honor or recognize yourself for what you’re good at? Instead of feeling less than because you aren’t an expert at everything, give yourself praise for the skills that are special to you. Remember that you are worthy and enough exactly as you are. So often people think that they have to do something or become something to feel confident or even worthy of that feeling. Nothing about you in this moment has to change for you to be able to feel worthy, enough, and confident. Everything about you, right now, is already worthy. Act as if, and it will become second nature. There’s that old saying of “fake it til you make it” and with confidence that couldn’t be more true. What would your life look like if you had confidence? How would you act? The more you embody that feeling and act from that feeling, even before you feel “ready” it will start to feel more and more comfortable. It’s a muscle, you just have to strengthen it. Why? Because you already are everything you desire to be within.

I’m wishing you all a beautiful week filled with love and joy.

xo, Michelle

The post 5 Reminders When Cultivating Confidence appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

A Reminder That You’re Worthy

Hi dear friends,

I hope that whatever the past week has brought you, you can find some happiness and relief here today! Today I want to dive in to the topic of worthiness, as it’s something that I’ve been thinking about and dissecting a lot in my life personally, and as we all know, when I learn things, I must share them with you, too.

It is my hope that this blog today can serve as a little loving reminder that despite everything that is happening in the world, you are worthy of your hopes, dreams, goals, and wishes. There is nothing that you have to do, say, or accomplish to be and feel worthy; you just simply are.

That sentence may have felt hard to believe or even imagine being true in a “normal” period of time, let alone global upheaval, but I promise you, it’s true. Of course, life has not gone the way any of us had planned over the past couple years, we’ve all had to make major life changes, adjust to devastating new normals, and try to find a sense of balance, stability, and meaning in a time that feels anything but. With all of this being painfully true, your worthiness lies intact, and I hope when you read this, you could take that in, and feel it in your bones as truth.

I used to think that worthiness was a prize doled out to the ones who did the most good, or who were the most perfect, the real high achievers. I used to act from a belief that if I could be as perfect as possible, I would then be worthy of my desires, and then all the good things would come to me. This mindset had me going round and round for years, like a hamster on a wheel. Do good, expect good; do bad, expect bad. It’s an exhausting and truthfully, manipulative way to live life.

Events from the past fews years, in my personal life, brought these beliefs to the surface for me and forced me to reconcile them. I made some pretty large errors in judgment that caused me uncomfortable consequences. Operating from my cause and effect mindset, I agonized over the belief that because I had made mistakes, meant that I was somehow, lesser of a person, and therefore less deserving of good things in life. Believing that you are undeserving of life and your goals and dreams, is a very grim way to live life. And I felt that deeply.

Rather than continuing to operate from this limiting mindset, I decided that enough was enough. I started to open up to the possibility that being worthy has nothing to do with the things that happen in life, but rather an unwavering quality that lives within us all, no matter what.

There is nothing that you have to do or achieve or accomplish to be worthy. It is your birthright to feel worthy in every moment of your life, and ultimately have the life of your dreams, but it is also your responsibility to uncover and break down the barriers and beliefs you have put in place blocking it.

Can you take in and fully own the fact that you are worthy, despite any misfortunes, mistakes, and bumps in your path? You are worthy regardless of anything and anyone else. Release the need to compare, to judge, and to worry, and start mustering up that confident energy of unwavering worthiness.

We are all here, living in this moment for a reason. We are all worthy, all the time. Please remember that.

xo, Michelle

The post A Reminder That You’re Worthy appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

How I Manage Unnecessary Stress

Dear friends,

I will keep this week’s message to you short, and sweet, as I know we all have so much that we are managing these days, I’d like to take up as little of your precious time as possible!

Let’s have a chat about unnecessary stress, how that’s different than regular life stress, and how we can start to manage and eliminate the these pesky things in life that we just don’t need to go through.

We all know that we are living in a difficult, unprecedented era of time, and there are many, many stresses that we are experiencing that we often don’t have the bandwidth or the tools to deal with, and that is all very real. So please remember, if you’re struggling to process everyday life it’s very okay and very, very normal. A gentle reminder for all of us, in times of extreme difficulty, we must double down on care, which includes prioritizing health, wellness, and boundary setting.

Life, in normal circumstances, is stressful. We are perpetually juggling many things at once, and of course, it takes a toll, and can make us feel scattered, anxious, and exhausted. There is a difference though, between the natural stresses of life, and what I like to call (or what my therapist named for me), unnecessary stress.

Unnecessary stress simply defined, is the stress that is brought into your life that is not yours to carry and is certainly not yours to solve. Unnecessary stress comes in the form of other people (usually toxic), systems, outside entities, and unhealthy habits that we cultivate within ourselves. Unnecessary stress makes our already complicated lives, even more so, and this week I want to give you the permission to release these added burdens that weigh heavy on you.

As empathetic humans, we tend to want to take on battles that aren’t ours to fight, and we burn ourselves out in the process of doing so. If you’re feeling that deep sense of burn out, stress, and extra anxiety, please take some time this week to take inventory of your life and see where unnecessary stress is creeping its way in, and know that you have the power to say no and escort it right out.

In order to take care of yourself in these extraordinary times, it’s required that you set boundaries to manage “life disruptors” that are not yours. You’re allowed to say no to the things that perpetually drain you of your energy, efforts, and resources.

These past few months alone, in my personal life, I’ve had to set extra firm boundaries with people I hold dear, and I’ve had to make major lifestyle changes to protect my mental health and well-being. It’s not always easy to do so, but the relief I feel from making these changes is invaluable.

You will never regret taking aligned actions, to protect yourself, your health, and your energy. Where will you start to release unnecessary stress in your life?

xo, Michelle

The post How I Manage Unnecessary Stress appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

5 Lessons I’ve Learned From Ended Friendships

Hi dear friends,

I want to talk today about some thoughts I have about the ending of friendships. I’ve always felt so conflicted about this topic, because somehow, somewhere, it was instilled in me early on that friendships that end signals some sort of moral or personal failure.

I think for a long time I lived under these rules and guidelines (unclear where they stem from) that it’s okay for romantic relationships to end, but it’s not okay for friendships to fall away.

In full transparency, I’ve had many dear friendships end, and what I know now to be true is that this is okay, and it is normal.

I think many of us hold an enormous amount of shame, guilt, and judgment over seemingly “failed” friendships, when in reality sometimes these relationships truly “ran the course.”

A friendship, or any relationship, coming to a close does not signify your worthiness or capability of love, honor, and acceptance.

In the last few years I’ve worked really hard to reframe and restructure what relationships mean to me, in my own life. It’s been freeing and enlightening to release myself from the preconceived notions and rules that I had formally held when it comes to the people and dynamics in my life.

I hope that in this blog this week, you can start to find a sense of freedom, understanding, and acceptance that comes from the rise and fall of a relationship.

Below are five of the most meaningful lessons I’ve learned to date on the topic:

Friendships don’t need to last “forever” in order to be meaningful, impactful, or loving. I whole-heartedly believe that some relationships are for a reason and a season.Human beings are never stagnant, so it’s futile to assume relationships would or could ever be. We are always growing, evolving, and changing, and thus, so are our relationships.Sometimes the most loving act you can do for someone is to give space and grace.We never really know what other people’s life experiences are like, which means that we can never fully understand why some people act the way that they do. Don’t waste your time trying to find the reasons of people’s behaviors, but rather cultivate awareness and acceptance, and a clear sense of what you will and will not tolerate.It is okay to set boundaries with people you love. A boundary is not a signal of something wrong, but rather an act of care. The red flag rises when the people in your life cannot or will not respect the boundary. Remember a boundary is not a punishment, but a chance to preserve the relationship.

xo, Michelle

The post 5 Lessons I’ve Learned From Ended Friendships appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.

5 Reminders for When You Feel Overwhelmed

My dear friends,

To state the obvious, there is a lot happening in the world right now. It feels like we are being emotionally pulled in so many directions, and yet, we are still expected to keep it all together. In turbulent times, feelings of overwhelm can rise to the surface, even if we aren’t in the heart of suffering. In deeply troubling times, remember that your feelings are valid. Remember that you are not responsible for solving all the world’s problems. Remember that caring for yourself is crucial. This week, it is my desire to put forth some tips for managing the overwhelm that you might be feeling.

1. Carve out some time for silence and stillness. It is in these moments that we can see and hear clearly. That we can know what’s true for us, that we can understand the actions to take, and that we can cultivate the strength and bravery to take the next step.

2. Cultivate positive self-talk. It is even more important in these moments, to be your own cheerleader. Remind yourself of your capabilities, that you can handle so much, that you already have handled so much, that you are always stronger than you think. In these make or break moments, we tend to flounder when our minds give up on ourselves. Give yourself the leg up, and train your brain to be your best advocate in these times.

3. Remember that you don’t have to have it all together. I keep telling myself that, there is no handbook for handling life. And it’s true. Each new day presents unique obstacles, so why would we ever expect to be perfect and maneuvering through it! It’s okay if you’re a mess, we are all a mess! It’s okay if you mess up, we all will. Trying to be perfect in life is like trying to stay dry in a hurricane. It’s impossible. Release the need to be everything, and focus on one thing, and then the next thing.

4. Make your tasks manageable. In times of uncertainty and change, it always feels like there’s so much to do and not enough time. That frantic energy of scarcity and lack makes us feel worse than we already do. Make a schedule for yourself if that gives you peace of mind. Dole out tasks for each day. Give yourself bite size chunks so that tasks feel easier to swallow. No one is asking for us to be superheroes during this time, they’re just asking for us to be human, and to remember our humanity. We can’t do it all and be it all, all it once. But we can get a lot done when we know ourselves enough to give us the tasks in a manageable way.

5. Be a source of strength for others. Sometimes we get wrapped up in our own dramas and we feel like there’s nothing we can do. One of the biggest sources of energy and strength for me at this time is being of service to those in my personal life and in my community. Reach out to a friend who might be having a hard time and offer an ear. Offer to bring over some groceries to someone who might not have the time to make the stop. Get creative with how you can be helpful. When we reach out to those we care about, we are also reaching back in to care for our souls. I do truly believe that we are all in this together, and so when one of us thrives, we all will thrive. We can be that source of love and happiness for one another.

I want to close by reminding you that there is no map for these uncharted waters. Remember that we are all just doing the best we can with what we’ve been given. Remember to be kind, be patient, and understanding with others. Be compassionate towards those around you, but also for yourself. Remember your strength and resilience, and know that it will take you far.

xo, Michelle

The post 5 Reminders for When You Feel Overwhelmed appeared first on Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.