"Aim High In Steering"

Believe it or not, this is what I remember from my high school drivers education class. For some reason, this has stuck with me all of these years! Of course back then, it was all about learning to drive and the reasoning behind this was of course to keep your eyes on the road and be aware of what was ahead. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I have come to use this concept throughout my life and not just my driving...

Do you Aim High In Steering?? In other words, are you able to look at the big picture of your life, look beyond what is currently holding you back, or are you feeling stuck? Do you ever feel like you are in a rut, or caught up in the stress of life and find it hard to look beyond that? Especially during these tragic times of such violence and discord in the world today, do you feel overwhelmed, helpless, hopeless, angry or just shut down?? Many people do right now. When I start to recognize that because of what is currently happening in the world, I am shutting down or feeling out of balance, I remind myself to aim high in steering and re-direct my thinking. For me, I first remind myself to BREATHE. When we are stressed and feeling overwhelmed, we start to almost hold our breath. Breathing becomes shallow. We are not mindful. We are not paying attention to our breath. If you do nothing else, I promise you that if you become mindful of your breathing you will see a shift in how you feel and how you think... 

Here are some tips that I teach to help my clients deal with the stress of life and find ways to naturally relieve anxiety:

• 5 and 5. This is what I call my breathing technique. Start by taking in one breath to the count of 5. As you breathe in, picture your favorite color. Picture it bathing your entire body with a healing energy. Now slowly exhale to the count of 5 and as you exhale, picture a different color, a color that will embody the stress, sadness or anxiety that you are feeling. Exhale that color to the count of 5. Repeat this process 5 times. You can do this anywhere and do it as often as you need to. It will really help you feel better if you make it a part of your day...
• Visualization. Do you have a photo of either a place that you have gone to or a place that you would someday like to go to?? Take that photo and either enlarge it or place it somewhere where you are able to see it and give yourself time (even just 5 minutes) to look at that photo and visualize how it would feel to be there. Imagine what the air smells like, what kind of sounds you would hear there, or what the water would feel like if you were swimming there. In other words, whatever location you choose, let yourself go there in your mind and engage all of your senses. You can take a visual vacation and even for 5 minutes, you can release some endorphins that could help you feel better.
• Aromatherapy. Scent is a powerful tool to help with relieving tension and anxiety. It is easier than ever now to find a diffusor and some quality essential oils. If you have never tried this and don't understand how this could be a helpfull tool to alleviate stress, I want you to think about this. How do you react when you suddenly find that you have been exposed to a skunk that has sprayed? What is your automatic response? Do you crinkle your nose, hold your breath, gag and can't wait to get away from the smell? You tense up and want to avoid it as soon as possible, right?? That's aromatherapy of a different kind! But your body is automatically responding, you don't have to think about how you respond, it just happens. But what happens when you walk into a home and smell an apple pie baking, or smell a rose, or breathe the ocean air? Do you notice a feeling of well-being? You breathe into it, you feel good and it is something that just happens, you don't make it happen. That is basically aromatherapy... Try it! Some of the good calming essential oils are lavendar, chammomile, jasmine, sandalwood, ylang ylang and rose flower. Feel free to contact me for more recommendations...

The bottom line here is simply this - when you start to feel stuck and overwhelmed with how things are going in your life, remember to Aim High In Steering! Look beyond what is burdening you and aim high to see what is possible and how you can help yourself move through whatever is holding you back.

Until next time,

Be Well. Here's to the road that lies ahead (no pun intended)   Here's to you!

Tracy