Hello and happy Wednesday my friends. I hope you all had a beautiful Valentine’s Day and got to spend it with those that you love the most. It is such a beautiful holiday that I feel like is not only all about life partners, but also about those that bring life and love to your heart.
Today, I wanted to talk about something that we have been going through and hopefully provide some tips so that it can help some of you, as well.
As many of you know, we had the recent passing of a best friend in our lives and if you follow me on Instagram, you know that there have been loads of other things going on, as well. And truthfully y’all, there has been SO MUCH MORE than I have shared on social media. Like honestly, my husband and I have been joking saying we need to cleanse ourselves or have someone come to the house to help purify things because life has seemed SO hard lately.
From the devastating loss of a friend, to sick pets, to unforeseen costs, to sickness…the past 5 weeks have been full of big and small challenges for our little family. Partly, I have wondered if this is result of just something we call LIFE, and the other part of me wonders if we somehow jinxed ourselves…BADLY.
With each challenge, my husband and I have looked at each other and wondered…what next and can we actually handle it? There have been many moments where all I want to do is lay under the covers and ignore it all because I truly couldn’t fathom something else from going wrong.
Now, we could just be in a season, or this could be life, orrrrr this could be a bad jinx…whatever it is, I am not sure it is over, and because of that, I have only one option which is to move through. So, we are moving through and I am going to share some tips with you, so that if you ever experience this type of season, you can move through too.
Tip number one is shifting your perspective. In the beginning all I could think was how horrible it all was and how I couldn’t handle more and why us. Now, I am looking at it as this has just got to be life because, truthfully, I only have that as an option. Life is hard sometimes. It really is. And I can be sad in that and feel my emotions and allow myself grace and time to heal, but I am not going to let it harden me and allow it to make me into a negative person. I can acknowledge how much it sucks, but there is still so much beauty around me and I refuse to be pulled down by it and only see the negative. Hopefully, this will be a time my hubby and I can look back on and laugh about or maybe we won’t even remember it, but for now, life is beautiful even when it can be full of challenges.
Tip number two is when you are feeling really low or like you are unable to pull yourself out, I want you to get up and go for a walk. Ideally, outside, but I know that isn’t always an option, so do your best, but getting fresh air, and movement will feel SO good and will make you feel like you can actually maybe tackle some of the other life responsibilities you hold.
Number three, is to start a gratitude list. This is crucial. When life seems to totally suck and feel unbearable, you have got to be able to find the positive and find the light. Some days it will be hard to find what you are grateful for, but remember that even a bed to sleep in can be something to see as a positive. Keep seeking the positive and that is what will start to come your way and what you will begin to see more of. You brain is hardwired to seek out what you are looking for. If you are looking for negativity, then that is all that you will see, but if you are looking for positivity….
Tip number four is to communicate. If you have a partner, this tip is super important, because in talking through a lot of the challenges we were facing, we realized we could easily solve them. We tackled them together as a team and that made the world of difference. If you don’t have a partner, that is okay because the tip is the sam: Communicate with yourself. Write your challenge out and brain dump about it, to brainstorm how to solve it. You have the power to fix this problem. It may not be easy, and maybe you won’t make the right choices, but that is okay. We all make mistakes and have mess ups in our life. It is what makes us human, so solve it as best you can but remember to LEARN from it later. How can you prevent it in the future, how can you do better if it were to arise again…reflect and grow.
Lastly, remember to laugh. Most of the challenges we have will not matter five years from now. If it won’t matter in five years, then try not to sweat it so much. Try to laugh about how comical the whole thing is instead of beating yourself up. Trust me, I know it can feel overwhelming and suffocating, but laughter is some of the best medicine. Find someone to laugh with whether it be about your life or about anything in general. Shift the negativity to some fun and remember things will get better. They always do.
I hope this advice was helpful to you all. I know it isn’t easy when life seems to feel like its getting the best of us, but we can get through it.
Someone told me 2023 is the year of the trickster, so don’t let them take you down and remember to laugh with them at their jokes.
xoxo,
Melissa
