This lesson,
We're going to be talking about the difference between the things we can do and the things that we should do.
As a therapist,
I don't love the idea of shoulds,
But we're going to work with that word for today.
And this is something that I'm still learning every day,
And I've seen so many people struggle with this.
Thinking about what does it mean to be able to do something?
Well,
Yeah,
There's lots of things that we can do if we lose hours of sleep,
Or don't get as much food as we should.
Maybe the thing that we can do is too much,
Too much for our nervous system,
And our bodies tell us in subtle ways at first,
But then the messages start to get louder and louder,
And more painful and harder to ignore.
And a lot of us are still figuring out how to listen to our bodies,
Because maybe before it hasn't been safe to be present in our bodies,
Or with ourselves,
Or our minds.
So if this is brand new to you,
I want you to start with trying to notice when you're thirsty,
And when you notice,
Take a sip of water every single time.
That's the goal,
But we're going to start with just noticing the thirst.
Is your mouth drier?
Do you feel your lips cracking or needing moisture?
It could also be an external reminder.
Maybe it's your favorite water bottle next to your bed,
Or keeping the ice tray full so you can have cold water,
If that's what you prefer.
And once you can practice that,
Go ahead and start working up to other things.
Notice when you have to use the restroom,
When you're tired,
When you're hungry,
When you're grumpy.
Notice and allow,
Without judgment.
So think about all the cues that your body is trying to give you day to day,
And maybe you feel the urge to put these things off as just a headache,
Or just exhaustion,
But these are actually really important signals for you to slow down.
And if slowing down doesn't feel possible right now,
I want you to just think about one way you can reclaim your time today.
Maybe it's two minutes in the bathroom,
Breathing,
Stretching.
Maybe when you're feeding your pet,
You're going to take just a little bit of extra time to play with them.
So yes,
We know you can do things.
You can do so many things.
You're probably really amazing and incredible,
And you're probably really talented at a lot of the things that you do.
But I want you to take some time to ask yourself,
Who are you doing it for?
Is it for yourself,
Or is it for somebody else?
And there's no right or wrong answer.
The things that you're pushing yourself so hard to do,
To accomplish,
Is it your own goals,
Or does it feel like somebody else's voice on your head?
So the first journal prompt for this lesson is,
What are the ways your body has been trying to tell you to slow down?
And have you been listening?
And how would you know if you were listening?
Are you still learning how to pay attention to the sensations that come up in your body and what they mean?
Most of us are.
So think about what the messages are that your body has been trying to say.
And for the second journal prompt,
I want you to think about,
What's one thing you can do today to listen to your body?
What's something you can cancel?
What's a meal you've really been wanting to have?
What movement practice have you been really wanting to get around to?
Stretching,
Yoga?
If this feels hard,
I'll give you a hint.
You are already doing something by being here right now,
By making it to the end of the second lesson.
Thank you so much for being here.
