With the holidays coming up, I think it is worth taking a look at the way we experience them. Holidays are rituals of connection in my life, ways that we come together and spend meaningful time around values we want to honor, cherish, or have fun with.
People who pay attention to what they did wrong, or what they could have done, are at risk for prolonged periods of sadness, feelings of helplessness and anxiety. Thankfully, deepening my understanding, and awareness, of how we explain adverse life events will lead to shifts in my thinking and ease my anxiety.
The ultimate goal is to live a happy life. Clients frequently talk with me about a deep struggle in not feeling happy or that they are not happy about some or many of the things in their lives. This has me thinking about “happy” and if it is something that we should really be chasing.
Have you ever found yourself uncomfortable with my child’s emotions in a given situation? Like when he got his feelings hurt or shared with tears his friends did not want to play with him?
“Maybe I am just oversensitive”. I have heard this over and over through the years and I think there is something in this thought that is worth thinking about.
Do you ever have an idea or want to set a goal for yourself that you later give up on because someone tells you it isn’t achievable?