Now that it has been almost 2 months of living within a global pandemic, I am realizing there are additional consequences I hadn’t previously considered.
One is that I seem to have lost my sense of direction. Self-direction, that is.
Whether you have been an essential worker or in lock down mode Covid-19 has changed your world. For many of you, it feels like your life has been put on “pause”, leaving you with extra time to fill and new challenges to meet.
This in between time is an opportunity to listen to your heart and refresh your over-cluttered and busy life. You get to choose how you use it and what to bring forward out of it.
If you are human, you are likely experiencing some ups and downs during your Covid-19 experience. I know I am. My worldview and thoughts are mostly positive, but last Sunday I ended up having a good cry. The next day I was back to normal again.
Even if we feel we are handling these unusual times well, they may still be taking a toll on us.
I noticed that I’ve been a little more nervous and jumpy even though my thoughts are mostly positive. My comfort zone seems to be shrinking as my life gets smaller and smaller. You may be noticing something similar or completely different, but I feel sure it’s impacting you too.
Now that many of us have been staying home for awhile due to Covid-19 we can find ourselves dealing with feelings of boredom, frustration or even depression. It can be challenging to stay positive when your world has been turned upside down.
A few years back I moved to another state to be close to my family, but I remember how isolated I felt before then with no family near by. That is why my mind keeps going to the seniors, shut ins, and people alone during these trying times of Covid 19.
Many of us are staying home in cooperation with various quarantines and lockdowns due to Covid 19. This creates an unusual pause in our lives that we can fill in many ways.
Most people get restless after a few days of rest and watching Netflix. It’s an odd feeling to have a forced staycation. But, there are several meaningful ways that you can spend your time. Here are a few I’m recommending to my clients:
It seems like almost all of my coaching conversations include the coronavirus these days. Clients are expressing their own fears, frustrations over their spouses reactions and their desire for answers.
I’ve been on this earth long enough to be able to look back and have regrets about things I wasted time on. I can now see how they didn’t serve me and am amazed at the amount of time lost to them.
We all have time wasters in our lives. Things that hindered us and made us feel bad, while stealing the hours of our days.
One of the first self help books I read was “Your Erroneous Zones” by Wayne Dyer. It was the first time I realized that worrying is just a fantasy about negative outcomes and a waste of precious time and energy.
I wish I could say I never worried again, but I’m human – just like you. Most of us still spend time on negative fantasies when we get triggered and worry takes center stage. We don’t have to stay there though, once we realize it’s happening. We can shift our mind out of worry and into something better. Here are 5 ways you can do just that.
In a world where there is so much going on and most of us are flying by the seat of our pants, we seldom take time to think through what we say or do.
Yet, slowing down and being more thoughtful are just what you and your world need.
Throughout our days we view the world through different lenses or perspectives. There are times when those filters lead us to believe the world is against us or full of bad things and other times when we can be full of hope and possibilities.
We get to choose.
Some of my clients come to me because they feel like they have lost touch with who they are. This often happens when there has been a change in their life. Things like divorce, moving, and kids going off to college can leave you feeling kind of floaty, especially if like most women, you’ve been focusing on taking care of everyone else.
Years ago I read about the idea of setting up a cache of special items that would bring me comfort when I needed it. My comfort box is pictured above and the funny thing is sometimes just knowing I have it is enough.
I think everyone should have one. It doesn’t have to be a box. It could be a drawer, basket, or whatever you want. The idea is to fill it with things that will soothe your soul when you are not feeling well or having experiencing a hard time.
My clients often come to me feeling they need to make big changes in their lives in order to feel peaceful or happy.
While they may be excited, they tend to also feel a bit stuck or overwhelmed. If they seem to be rushing things, it is likely that fear is driving them to run away from something instead of their simply moving toward their dreams.
The word distractions has been coming up in my world lately so I thought I would write about them.
I define distractions as anything that takes your focus away from living a meaningful life.
Today, I am remembering special moments from my past and feeling into who I have become and what I want more of in my life.
I guess you could say I am in an introspective mood.
From this perspective I can see the gifts of my past challenges and how they supported me in becoming who I am today. I don’t believe in regrets, but have a few. Mostly, I am amazed by my journey and how I moved from feeling broken and unable to function to raising a wonderful son, becoming a coach, and creating a life of grace and gratitude. Continue reading
We all have patterns in our lives. Long lines of experiences and lessons that cause us to believe certain things are true. They can lead us into the dark alley of always/never thinking that closes the door to possibilities.
Years ago when I was having a hard time at my job I looked for ways that would help me stay more positive. And, in integrity. I was upset about things that were happening and could feel myself being pulled in the direction of talking behind someone’s back.
My client had a very clear goal. She wanted to find a man to share her life with. She called this goal “finding the one”.
We started with some foundation and discovery work about what she was looking for, open to, and defining her deal breakers. But, it didn’t take long before I realized that she was engaged in a cycle of self sabotage.