Thoughts come rushing in. Feelings seem overwhelming. In these times it can be so easy to be swept away in either or both of these currents. Instead recently I’ve learned to see these as opportunities to partner with myself. I want to encourage you to also consider ways of partnering with yourself.
Helpful questions to ask yourself:
- What do I need right now?
- How would I offer to help a friend in this situation?
- Is there something physical I can do to help myself – do I need to drink some water, eat something, take a walk?
- Is there something creative I’m yearning to express?
- Would some time just in worship help?
Just the other night, I had a surge of physical sensations, seemingly out of nowhere. I’m not sure if it qualified as a hot flash or hot flush or something totally separate. I suddenly felt very warm, my heart was beating faster, and I generally felt unsteady. I happened to be with other people and I felt like my face was bright red. My instinct was to get out of there, as quick and as discretely as possible. The situation was such that this really wasn’t a possibility. As I breathed through the sensations my mind ran through a rolodex of options. Here is what I did to partner with myself.
- Breathed deeply.
- Acknowledged I was struggling.
- Stepped away to the restroom – used this time to asked myself some of the questions above.
- Washed my hands with cool water and connected to that sensation.
- Took a few sips of water.
- Did my best to be kind to myself, at least internally.
Another post for these times that you might find helpful is The Power of Slowing Down