Recovery Image: Start Your Day Right!

click to enlarge

Start your day right!
What are you filling your cup with?


See sidebar for more recovery images and quotes

imagesource:http://www.flickr.com/photos/d35ign/9331101846/

Recovery: Is What's Holding You Back Worth Holding On To?

Past experiences, and the emotions that accompany them, all serve a purpose. We learn by doing, observing, and by making mistakes. We file those lessons away for future reference and we draw upon them to help us navigate the present. There's nothing wrong with this process unless, that is, it becomes the most used (if not only) navigation tool we possess. We, and the world around us, are in constant change. Even the tiniest deviation from the circumstances in which we found ourselves previously will have an influence on the outcome today.

For an example, when you were a child you were taught that fire burns. It's dangerous. You were told not to touch it because it will hurt you. That lesson is still with you as an adult but now you know how to use fire to your advantage. You had to adjust the lesson of your past in order to use fire safely to light a candle, to cook, to warm yourself by.

But what if you only held on to the first lesson learned and didn't deviate from it over the years? How different would your life be?

When we don't update the lessons of our past, we hinder the progress of our present. We create a wall of fear and self-doubt. The past becomes a proverbial prison, holding us back from moving forward and living and enjoying our lives as we are meant to.

The same holds true for how we define ourselves. What happened in the past is not our permanent definition. It's not a gauge for what is possible in the present. Who we were then does not determine who we are now.

Do you hold yourself in constant accountability for the mistakes you made as a young child and allow them to decide who you are today? Of course not, because we understand that those mistakes were made because we didn't know any better, we were learning, and we had some growing up to do. Despite what we may think, this is true no matter what our age. We are constantly learning and growing along the way, even if we don't realize it. Because of this, it's nearly impossible to be who you used to be. There are just too many variables.

When self is constantly confined and defined by the past there is no forward movement, no progress.  Past lessons no longer serve the purpose they are intended to but, instead, hold us captive. This is why it is so important to examine what we're holding on to, to be sure that it's not holding us back from the life we are deserving of.

Letting go of what's holding you back takes self-examination, patience and forgiveness.

Ask yourself if what you're holding on to is:

• relevant in your life today
• outdated thoughts/beliefs
• positive and supportive
• keeping you from being yourself
• keeping you from moving foward
• detrimental to how you feel about yourself
• causing you anxiety, fear, shame, or guilt
• causing feelings of inadequacy
• making you feel undeserving of love, success, happiness,  or joy

If you find that your answers are mostly negative, it's time for some updating and clearing out.

It's okay to let go of those lessons that are no longer pertinent to the life you desire and deserve. Just because they served their purpose then, doesn't mean that they still do. No matter what the past holds, you are who you decide to be today. The life you desire for yourself is achieved one thought, one belief, one small change at a time. 




picsource:http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolopaternoster/4603639412/

Recovery Inspiration: Happiness

Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it the more it will elude you. But if you turn your attention to other things it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.

Henry David Thoreau

image source:http://www.flickr.com/photos/angelic0devil6/2148755799/in/photostream/

Recovery Inspiration: Courage is...

Courage is having faith despite overwhelming odds, believing in yourself when all others have lost hope, and loving yourself no matter what.
MrsM

=

Recovery Inspiration: Never Stop Fighting. Never Lose Faith

No one is ever too broken, too scarred, or too far-gone to create change.
Never Stop Fighting. Never lose faith.
MrsM



 =

Recovery: 5 Things You Can Do Right Now To Change Your Life

Forgive and Let Go of Past Hurts and Mistakes:

Everyone has a history. Some histories are better than others, but most all of us have events in our past that have caused us pain in some way.

When we allow these past events to remain a part of our current lives they affect our ability to move forward, live life in the present, and experience the love, joy, and fullness of life that we are entitled to.

Forgiveness is often necessary in letting go. Depending on what has occurred, we are either required to forgive ourselves, or forgive another. Forgiveness and letting go isn’t about forgetting or condoning. It involves a conscious decision to change our emotions about a certain event, learning from the experience, and stop allowing it be a negative influence on our present daily life.

Past hurts and mistakes are a heavy burden we need not carry the weight of. Whether the pain is due to something that happened to us, or happened because of us, we can learn to let it go and move into a happier and healthier stage of our lives.

We are not our past.



Believe in Yourself and Cultivate a Positive Attitude:

What we think and believe matters. Our attitude about life, and ourselves, influences not only how we feel about ourselves, but also how others feel about us.

Negativity is destructive and counter productive to living happily. There’s no better way to turn a possibility into an impossibility than negative thinking and lack of self-belief. It becomes the barrier that keeps us from being able to reach our full potential, our dreams, our aspirations, and the joy we all deserve in our lives.

Replace those negative and self-defeating thoughts with positive statements. Believe in yourself and your abilities. Learn to cultivate a positive attitude by stopping hurtful self-talk when it happens. Don’t spend one more minute selling yourself short and cheating yourself out of the life you deserve.

We become what we think and believe.



Do Something For Someone Else:

Causes, charities, and people … there are so many who can benefit from our efforts. It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, take up all our free time, or be costly.

Even the smallest of gestures can make a big difference:

• Helping an elderly neighbor by offering to pick up some things for them when we go grocery shopping.
• Giving an understanding and reassuring hug to someone going through a difficult time.
• Volunteering at the hospital, nursing home, school, etc.
• Supporting our favorite cause or charity.

The possibilities are endless.

There’s so much reward in the giving of our selves for a good cause. Whether it’s for friends, family, or strangers, we never walk away without having been gifted in the process.

By helping others we help ourselves.



Be Yourself:

Sounds simple, right? Actually, with all the preconceived ideas of what we should be doing with our lives, how we should be dressing, what we should look like, what we should weigh, what’s acceptable and what’s not… it can be easy to lose confidence in who we are. Trying to meet the standards of others, or society, can chip away at how comfortable we are with who we are.

It’s important that we feel comfortable with ourselves so that we can be authentic without fear. It all starts with self-acceptance, and moves on to self-appreciation, and then into self-confidence. Start accepting yourself as you are and there’s a change reaction.

The world would be a very boring place if everyone looked the same, weighed the same, acted the same, did the same things, enjoyed the same things, and lived the same lives. We’re not meant to be copies of one another. We are meant to be our own, unique, and glorious selves. Learning to be ourselves, and to love ourselves, is essential to truly knowing joy and happiness. So, shrug off what the world tells you to be, and be true to yourself.

I am uniquely and wondrously made.



Relax, Renew, Revive:

Take time for yourself. No matter how busy our schedules are it is important that we give ourselves time to relax, renew, and revive. We are not put on this earth merely to work and meet the demands of our careers, families, and countless obligations. We are here to enjoy our lives. It is up to us how well we do just that.

Getting overwhelmed and over-scheduled is draining and, more often than not, leaves us feeling tired, cranky, and defeated. What good is that? There are, of course, things that we have to do but how many things are we doing that aren’t necessary? Go through your obligations and weed out the ones that either aren’t necessary or can be delegated to another for the day.

Scheduling time for ourselves should be a priority. If we don’t take care of ourselves we are less able to care for others. Even small breaks from the demands of our lives can be renewing:

• A cup of tea in your favorite chair, on the porch, with a friend, or all alone in your bedroom (with a “do not disturb” understanding with your family or roommates).
• A walk around the block, park, or along the beach.
• A long soak in the tub with some scented candles and relaxing music.
• Movie night with a friend or loved one.
• Playing your favorite music while singing and dancing along.
• Lay in the grass and stare up at the clouds (or stars), and listen to the world around you.

When we take care of ourselves we are better able to care for others. 

©Weighing The Facts


picsource:http://www.flickr.com/photos/75227967@N00/98193355/in/photostream/