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By Eve A. Wood, MD
Illustrations by Kate O’Leary
Affirming Yourself to Calm
This is a stressful time of year. The holidays are here, and for many of us, our to-do lists are longer than ever. On top of that, we are feeling financially squeezed and calendar challenged. Our “free time” seems to be filled up with tasks, errands and the chores of usual life maintenance. We are stressed, overworked and overwhelmed.
We bring our challenged selves to work. Instead of calmly serving our clients, we may have difficulty performing optimally. We might even increase the tension in our treatment rooms. We are vulnerable to spreading our own stresses as opposed to facilitating health, peace and well-being. We can only share what we have to give! So, I thought I’d encourage you to adopt some new self-care—and client-care—strategies this season.
Time for Yourself
There are a variety of ways you can take care of yourself, and they don’t have to be complicated. Here are a few ideas for you to try: Opt out of buying so many gifts. Do potlucks instead of making whole meals. Put yourself on your own gift list. Pace yourself. Attend necessary events for shorter periods of time. Take time to relax, rest, exercise, pray, dance, meditate and breathe deeply. Remind yourself of what the holidays are really about. And, give thanks.
On top of implementing any or all of these ideas, I’d like to teach you how to calm your nervous system with affirmations. Affirmations are the things we say and think. They are, in essence, whatever we tell ourselves. And what we tell ourselves can encourage growth and healing just as easily as it can be destructive or problematic. We can rev ourselves up or settle ourselves down. A lot of the things we say to ourselves are basically negative affirmations. For example: “I have too much to do. There is no way I can get it all done.” Negative affirmations fuel our anxiety. The more we tell ourselves worrisome things, the more our systems register stimulation and agitation. We can actually even spiral out of control.
But, just as negative affirmations can cause anxiety,
positive affirmations can calm your nervous system and promote well-being. You can use the power of your mind to heal your body during this holiday season. Try using a series of positive affirmations to heal your life. Make the decision to tell yourself nurturing, healing things on a regular basis, calming your anxiety and improving your performance during this challenging time.
At first, you may find yourself resistant to the idea of saying positive things to yourself that you “know aren’t true.” That’s okay—many people struggle with this issue. But the truth of the matter is that almost nothing we tell ourselves is absolute. Consciously or unconsciously, we choose what we say, and our bodies then respond to what we tell ourselves in a self-fulfilling prophecy. So the more we express worrisome thoughts, the more anxious we feel; while the more we express joyful, fulfilling thoughts, the more happy and peaceful we feel. In choosing to tell ourselves positive affirmations, we’re choosing health and well-being for ourselves and, as a result, for our clients.
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American Massage Therapy Association®
