Habit 1 Check-in

"We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty." - Maya Angelou

Change is not easy. Even with something as simple as trying to create a new habit, I find myself easily pulled into older habits. Perhaps habits that aren't beneficial... like binge watching shows on Netflix while I have a house that needs to be cleaned....

That being said, I did notice some changes in myself over the last almost week after beginning my Existing in the Present habits. The first thing that I noticed was the change in what my "brain dump" themes were. Over the first few days, there were a lot of repeat anxieties that appeared. It really helped me to identify at least two key anxieties that I have in my life right now. After noting that, I did find that I thought about them less often during the day. It was as if I had made a note that they existed, so my brain gave them a rest during the day. Thank goodness!

Another interesting note regarding the brain dumps was the change that I saw these last couple of days. My first few days were pages filled with topics spilling over in my mind. Stress and worries mostly. However, in the last couple of days, more notes of gratitude have been sneaking in. They mix among fewer worries than that first day as well. I'm curious to see if that remains the case of the next week.

I found a lot of success with the new habit of naming my thoughts before they could consume me too. It was amazing when I began how many times I would have a thought about something far out of my control. By simply pausing and naming the thought "Worry", I calmed my emotional reaction. It  tempered my mind from spinning out of control. In other words: SUCCESS!!!

Don't get me wrong, there were still plenty of times over the last week I found myself in the same cycles I've been in for years. They weren't as consuming as they had previously been, though. At times, I felt more in control, and in return, I did feel happier.