"Be the calm eye of the storm where nothing phases you, focus on your centre to remain balanced, let your life flow like a stream of wind" – Jay Woodman
We continue to live in times of uncertainty. Many of us have learned strategies for adapting to a new way of life and some of us have endured great hardship.
This week we would like to share a tool which will help you to create a sense of balance and calm when things in feel a little turbulent and beyond your control.
Do you ever experience mood swings? Have you noticed how some people appear to express a wider fluctuation of emotion than others? Often people who are capable of being very ‘up’ seem also capable of being very ‘down.’ Conversely, some people present as solid, stable and unwavering in most situations.
The way that we are feeling is undoubtedly influenced by our circumstances, however we do not all respond to events in the same way. Our emotions are coloured by what is going on with us internally.
Clearly, life affects mood; but to what degree we are influenced may vary from person to person. The distance our current mood is able to swing away from a balanced centre point, seems to be an individual thing.
Whist we can all think of people on either end of the spectrum, everyone appears to sit somewhere along it. Imagine it like a swinging pendulum. Some cover a greater distance, but all have to arrive back at a balanced equilibrium when the drama is over.
In difficult times, it is not easy to acknowledge where highs may balance lows, but there are usually things to be grateful for during adversity.
There is no joy without sorrow, no love without loss, no success without disappointment.
The greatest hardships teach the most valuable lessons, the highest rewards result from the most arduous efforts, and there are wonderful examples of human love, community spirit and sacrifice during a pandemic.
We regularly teach that self-awareness is necessary for resilience and this applies here too. Being aware of the cycles and rhythms of our own mood can be really useful.
We do not remain the same, even when our circumstances do.
If we are feeling low, we can accept that our frame of mind will change at some point. We will not feel like this forever. This is in line with the Buddhist teaching of impermanence. It can be of great comfort to us when we are suffering.
Additionally, if we know that we are feeling a little volatile, we can accept that big changes in mood take up a lot of energy and seek to be kinder to ourselves. We can also consciously question whether that energy is being well spent.
Whatever the highs and lows look like to us, there is always some kind of balance. The extent to which we fluctuate in mood may vary but, when we are aware that we are out of balance, we can consciously work towards finding equilibrium returning to our centre.
‘How to Rise – A Complete Resilience Manual’ from Sheldon Press has a specific tool for finding your centre. It takes you on a journey of self-discovery and shares over 60 tools and techniques to help improve your mental wellbeing, reduce anxiety and allow you to take control of your life