Nervous System Reset Day 3
Thought
Hello my sweet friends! Welcome to day 3 of our 7 day Nervous System Reset program. Today’s practice invites you to pay attention to your internal dialogue.
The words we think and say have so much power. The words we choose to use affects how we feel. What we think about ourselves can become a core belief, which can then create our reality.
I’ll provide a personal example. I used to frequently think and say, “I hate math. I don’t get it. I’ll never understand math. I suck at math.” In school, math was typically my lowest mark on my report card. It’s not because I didn’t understand the concepts, rather it was my attitude towards the subject. My attitude towards math was likely informed by a low grade I got on a test. That low grade affected my self-worth. I didn’t like how that made me feel, so the best thing I could do to protect myself at the time was to tell myself that math is that one subject that I am not good at. Math challenged me, which I didn’t particularly like. I carried my dislike of math from elementary school to Teacher’s College. It wasn’t until I started tutoring a student in math that I realized that I needed to change my attitude towards mathematics otherwise this student may adopt a similar mindset. I remember boosting my confidence by saying things like, “I am good at math.” “I am open to learning and growing.” “A good challenge is exactly what my brain needs in order to make new connections.” “Math can be fun!” I started to believe what I was saying. I then felt it in my body. This translated through the math lessons and activities I devised. My student thrived in this environment as she too started to believe that math can be interesting and fun, even though it can present challenges. This student not only excelled in math, but also in every single subject area. Our thoughts have power! Attitude is everything!
“Where attention goes, energy flows.” This quote reminds me to pay attention to the quality of my thoughts. I often ask myself, “Are these thoughts true?” “Are these thoughts kind, loving and compassionate?” “Do these thoughts make me feel good?” If the answer is “no” to any one of these questions, then I devote time to understanding where these thoughts are coming from and how I can reframe these thoughts so that they are filled with love and compassion. The belief of “I’m not good enough” or “I don’t measure up” is a common example of a thought that is not true, unhelpful and hurtful. When that thought comes up, you could pause and ask yourself, “What does good enough even look like?” Chances are you may not have an answer to this question because “good enough” is subjective. You could update this core belief with “I am doing the best I can.” Or “I am enough.”
As you bring awareness to your thoughts throughout our practice, I invite you to notice how these thoughts make you FEEL. What physical and/or emotional response does it create in your body? How does your internal dialogue affect how you show up in the world?