I Am On a Self Improvement Journey
Getting Better (written 12/9/16 1:18am)
So, I've felt the need to update you.
I tried the method from the 40-day self-help book. I stuck with it for about 14 days and realized that what it asked for was a little extensive for my taste. So I modified it to fix my schedule. Anyways, the process worked. I'm not sure it worked in the way that the book had said it would work, but I found that taking a bit of time each day for positive introspection, not negative self-talk, but looking at my life and being grateful for every piece of it... not just the good, had a positive effect on me.
At the beginning of the exercise, I found myself hating it. The goal was to write about things that make you upset and talk about why you're grateful for them. I felt like this was the worst way to start a morning. Wake up. Think about something that ticks you off. Then write about it... Naturally, I fought it and continued to struggle. I thought, 'Why not just write about the things that made me happy? I don't want to be reminded of these things.'
That's when I realized that I was still in a state of avoidance. Sure, it's been shown that talking about happy things, helps elevate people's moods. But there's something empowering about confronting the bad in your life as well. So I picked it back up. Struggled again at the beginning, but then I started to find my footing.
I am now able to look back on some of the darkest points of my life and find gratitude in them. The more I am able to talk about it (at least in dialogue with myself), the more strengths I find, coming from out of the hardships. I feel that I am I more complete person for this process... and if you look at the date of my first entry, this took me a lot longer than 40 days. I've been on this trek for over a year now, and I'm finally starting to see what's on the top of the mountain. I know that the journey is not over yet, but now I have faith in myself to know that I am capable of handling whatever comes next.
So, I've felt the need to update you.
I tried the method from the 40-day self-help book. I stuck with it for about 14 days and realized that what it asked for was a little extensive for my taste. So I modified it to fix my schedule. Anyways, the process worked. I'm not sure it worked in the way that the book had said it would work, but I found that taking a bit of time each day for positive introspection, not negative self-talk, but looking at my life and being grateful for every piece of it... not just the good, had a positive effect on me.
At the beginning of the exercise, I found myself hating it. The goal was to write about things that make you upset and talk about why you're grateful for them. I felt like this was the worst way to start a morning. Wake up. Think about something that ticks you off. Then write about it... Naturally, I fought it and continued to struggle. I thought, 'Why not just write about the things that made me happy? I don't want to be reminded of these things.'
That's when I realized that I was still in a state of avoidance. Sure, it's been shown that talking about happy things, helps elevate people's moods. But there's something empowering about confronting the bad in your life as well. So I picked it back up. Struggled again at the beginning, but then I started to find my footing.
I am now able to look back on some of the darkest points of my life and find gratitude in them. The more I am able to talk about it (at least in dialogue with myself), the more strengths I find, coming from out of the hardships. I feel that I am I more complete person for this process... and if you look at the date of my first entry, this took me a lot longer than 40 days. I've been on this trek for over a year now, and I'm finally starting to see what's on the top of the mountain. I know that the journey is not over yet, but now I have faith in myself to know that I am capable of handling whatever comes next.
31-35, F
