Can you believe it? We’re almost at the end of July!?
Feel like you’ve been drinking a bit more than normal this month? You’re not alone! A poll I read earlier this week describes July as one of the heaviest drinking months (for women in North America), followed closely by August.
If you are feeling as though you’d like to start to taper off alcohol in August, make sure to pick up a copy of Drink Less Be More (or if you already have it, open it up!!) and review Chapter 5 which is full of tips and strategies to cut back on alcohol without having to dial back on fun.
Remember, you are in control! Yes, this may be the season of BBQs and beach parties and vacations and alcohol may be available daily. Ultimately, it’s up to you and only you if you drink it!
I used to go to Al-Anon meetings (meetings for family members or partners of alcoholics) and one of my favourite slogans is an adaption of the first step of AA, but instead of admitting powerlessness over alcohol (which I personally don’t resonate with as much) you admit powerlessness over PEOPLE, PLACES and THINGS.
Yes, we are powerless over everything and anyone other than OURSELVES!
Trying to control everyone around you, or your environment, triggers etc will only drive you crazy, leave you feeling more anxious and stressed out, or you will feel as though you are a “victim” to your circumstances.
Let me tell you, you’re NOT.
You always have a choice. Take control, now.
If you feel that this season has been wasted (literally and in the drunk sense 😉 and you are unhappy with the choices you’ve been making – then CHANGE THEM.
Focus on what you CAN control, what YOU can do to change your circumstances and start making changes today! Don’t wait for another month to go by!
I’ve had a number of clients express how their healthy habits have gone out the window and they’re feeling a loss of control. Can you relate?
The past few weeks have also been kind of wacky for me. After 10 days of a partially work-related travel roadtrip, my daughter and I arrived to my hometown/mom’s home. I had high expectations of how quickly we would be able to settle in and all of the work I wanted to get caught up on.
After the craziness I was leaving behind in Mexico (political unrest, blockages, gas shortages, inconsistent internet, threat of Zika and Dengue), I had an expectation that I would be able to control my environment and time here. I had visions of increased productivity and creativity, hours to write in the evenings, energized morning (without being woken up by roosters), the ability to implement everything I learned from my mastermind in LA immediately.
Well, life had other ideas. My daughter’s 3 months shy of 2 years old and upon arrival to my mom’s, it felt like she’d all of sudden catapulted into that famed two-year-old tantrum phase. Her favourite response is to shout NOOOOOOO and she is incredibly demanding of my attention. Her favourite command is now UP!! She’s also refusing to sleep, either for nap time or at bedtime, and waking up way earlier than normal.
Combined with family visiting and two weeks of many client and collaboration calls – my ME time evaporated quickly. And I felt incredibly off-balance, with slight panic and fatalistic thinking bubbling up under the surface. I felt as though what was happening right now was going to be FOREVER. That I was NEVER going to have time for myself, that my daughter’s schedule was going to be wacky forever, that I would forever feel behind in my business.
Isn’t it amazing how quickly we can slide into this kind of negative thinking when we are taking care of ourselves?
I am forever grateful for the teachings I receive from doing this work because, through supporting my clients and my continual commitment to growth and personal development, I was reminded again this week – get control of yourself, woman!
Here’s what it looked like:
Go to sleep earlier.
Set my alarm earlier, even if it means 5 am, to get some of that precious “me time.”
Meditate, first thing. Even if only for 10 minutes. Make this the first priority, before checking my phone.
Stick to morning self-care rituals.
Avoid wine, because for me, it’s so easy to “check out” of what’s happening, and I knew once I had a glass, it would be easier to make that a habit than to actually to the work to center myself at the end of the day and release stress.
Get outside. Get moving. I realized I hadn’t exercised in three weeks (other than walking)!! I started putting music on in the afternoons and dancing around like a crazy person with Luna. Yesterday, I went for a hike with her in the stroller.
Use essential oils, aromatherapy, teas, journaling and reading to unwind at the end of the day, instead of Instagram and wine. (I haven’t used wine to unwind in quite awhile, yet it’s a pattern that’s easy for me to slide into when I’m visiting home).
Another important mindset shift for me this week comes from Tony Robbins:
“Trade your expectations for appreciation and your world changes instantly.”
I had so many expectations of how things were going to go once I was back in Canada that I was feeling anxious and stressed when everything wasn’t falling into place perfectly.
When I started shifting my expectations to appreciations, I started noticing just how much I have to be grateful for. My amazing mother and family, the fact that I CAN structure my work around a toddler (for the most part), the fact that I am able to move my business from Mexico to Canada for a few months, the fact that I am able to spend so much precious time with my daughter at a critical stage in her development, the fact that I have these tools to pull myself out of a swampy headspace so quickly, the fact that I have an amazing community (you’re a part of it!) to help me stay accountable, that I am surrounded by so much beauty… the list goes on.
I’d love to know-
How can you be more control of yourself this week?
What choices can you make differently?
How can you shift expectations into appreciations? Try it out, and let me know what you notice!
xoxo
