3 Meaningful Ways To Create Balance During Seasons Of Change

"Life is a balance of holding on and letting go" ~Rumi

Things Change

One thing is for sure, EVERYTHING in life changes! Just as the weather shifts from cold to warm, so do our experiences and ability to flow with some of the transformations that changes may bring. 

Experiences that are positive produce feelings of happiness and success. These times might remind you of summer and fun in the sun! Who doesn’t love warm weather and feeling good? 

On the other hand, some experiences are stormy, dark and uncertain. Difficult seasons can leave you feeling jaded or stuck in your feelings with expectations of how things should be in a world that’s constantly changing around you. That’s why it’s super important to create a sense of balance within yourself to allow situations to come and go for good health and well-being.  

Taking small, but deliberate steps over time that reflect how you wish to live your life will create peace and happiness in the now.  

What do you need to get started?

Honesty and a little self-awareness. Truthfully answer the following questions: 

• How am I feeling right now? Full of life or low on energy?
• Do I feel stressed or emotionally balanced?

If you can answer “full of life” and “emotionally balanced”, you're doing great and congratulations! Keep up the great work, and I’d love to hear your tips for maintenance. Please drop them in the comments.

If you're like many who are managing multiple roles and responsibilities, all while living through the strange times we’re in right now, you will likely select “low on energy” and “feeling stressed” at some point or another! 

If this is you, it might be time to implement some tools for rebalancing. Give yourself grace and time to learn your way through. Life is tough enough, it’s not a race. Now, let’s jump into it!

1.  Be Aware Of Self

When changes come at you fast or during seasons of high stress, you might find yourself going about your day on auto-pilot. Your mind might be mulling over a million things at once - family matters, finances, your endless to-do list, past and future events, politics, war, you name it.

With all that swirling around in your mind, it’s pretty hard to hear and feel the signals your body might be sending or screaming at you about your health needs. Those nagging aches and pain, tightness in your chest, headaches, and restless nights might be underlying signs you're taking on too much or not letting go. 

Dr. Rick Hanson wrote an article about being aware of your body where he stated, “...What we experience being—thoughts and feelings, memories and desires, and consciousness itself—is constrained, conditioned, and constructed by the body via its nervous system. The fabric of your mind is woven by your body. Further, being aware of your body and its signals gives you useful information about your deeper feelings and needs. Tracking your body's subtle reactions to others also tells you a lot about them.” 

If you're feeling the stress of it all, and are looking to return home to your body, try these exercises:

• Be mindful - observe your thoughts and feelings without judgment. As situations and thoughts come up, pay attention to the sensations happening in your body at that moment. You will notice stressful situations and thoughts make you feel drained, agitated, upset, or anxious. Your heart rate may become rapid with shallow breathing due to your fight or flight response kicking in. Take some deep breaths and a few steps back from the situation!
  
  Remind yourself that these are low priority thoughts and interactions that you should not waste much time on. Let the emotions and thoughts wash over you and allow the moment to pass. I’m sure you have more pressing things to do or people to care for. Have faith and let it be.
  
  Positive thoughts and experiences will have the opposite effect, causing feelings of love, joy and happiness. Seek to create more of this! 
  
  
• Just Breathe. When you feel anxious, stop everything you’re doing and take in 3-5 deep breaths of fresh air. Upon each exhale, let go of your thoughts and worries. Only focus on your breathing, in and out. Nothing else matters, but maintaining your breath to self soothe and calm your nervous system.
  
  You can’t make good decisions when your mind and emotions are on a rollercoaster. Stay with your breath, and return to it each time you start to feel worked up. Check out this short video on breathing exercises to relieve anxiety by Dr Jo. 

2.  Be Intentional About How You Spend Your Wealth, And I’m Not Talking Money!

Nothing is more valuable than your health! We live in a world that places a high priority on acquiring money. Sure, money can afford you luxuries and freedom, but what good is it if you have poor health from living an imbalanced life?

When your mind is preoccupied with all the things on your plate, you unintentionally send all of your productive energy to the mind to solve these problems. Pretty exhausting, huh?! Burning up energy in the mind on negative matters will wear you and your immune system down leaving you prone to illness, accidents and poor decision-making.

The reality is, we’re all here for a limited amount of time. For this reason, we should focus our efforts on being intentional about how we spend our time and energy on activities and people that bring us joy, not stress. 

Here are a few simple ways to practice living intentionally that will do wonders for your life:

• Cut the cord to distractions. No one can tell you how to live your life. Only you know what makes you feel whole, and things that make you low-spirited. Wasting time on harmful distractions and bad habits rob you of precious time you could be using to advance your life in positive ways. Decide what brings you happiness or distress, and make the choice to slowly cut out the things that bring you down.
  
  
• Prioritize self-care and rest for wellness. This is a biggie! Don’t buy into the hype that you must grind until you die. The goal is to find ways to work smarter, not harder, so you allow time for proper rest and self-care for rejuvenation. You're not a machine, and you only get one life. Treat yourself well with quality sleep, downtime, and self-care rituals that reconnect you with your purpose such as prayer, meditation, getting out in nature, and journaling how you feel.

3.  Be Simple

Choosing to live a simple life is one of the most rewarding things you could do to reclaim balance! Many people believe it can’t be done because there is just so much to do each day. In spite of that, if your goal is to live a happier, more pleasurable life you’ll need to make some changes to your routine. It’s inevitable.   

Living simply involves making conscious choices to invest your time in people, places and things that improve your well-being and peace of mind. It also includes making the decision to let go of the things that keep you frazzled and weighed down. 

Being simple requires you to intentionally slow down to live in each moment, which can feel awkward at first if you're constantly used to being on the go. Slowing down allows you to appreciate the fullness of life, and the beauty in every struggle no matter the season.

You begin to see your time and energy as precious commodities. You become enlightened to just how easy it is to take your health for granted. You start appreciating life for what it is, you learn to be thankful! 

If you're feeling the need for more space in your life, it might be time to evaluate why you’re doing the things you do. Are they serving you or others?

There are things you can do to simplify every area of your life for more stability. It’s ok to ease into it. The ones below are really helpful to get started: 

• Practice flexing your “no muscle”. Limit taking on tasks for others that you feel are burdensome or that they could do for themselves. No one is saying neglect your priorities, but not everyone else’s priority is your priority. Learning to say no, while putting yourself first is powerful. It creates space for you to energetically say “yes” to the right invitations in life, while learning to set healthy boundaries with others because YOU matter! Life Coach Iyanla Vanzant talks about this life-changing skill in this short, but powerful clip.
  
  
• Declutter your home, mind and finances. Your physical surroundings have a direct impact on how you feel mentally and physically. A clean space boosts your mood and energy, as opposed to a visible pile of dirty laundry or dishes. Take your time tidying one room at a time. If it feels overwhelming, take a break and/or ask for help.
  
  You need your mind available to take action towards simplifying your life. Observe negative thinking, breathe and let it go. Every thought doesn't require an action. Replace them with positive affirmations and empowering self-talk. Seek help with this from a mental health professional, if needed.
  
  Get control of your finances. You don’t have to be rich, but you should know where your money is going! Document your budget with a plan for savings and debt elimination over time.

Just like all other major life goals, creating balance takes time and effort. Be patient and go slow. Keep a journal of your thoughts, feelings and progress. Don’t give up!

Need help documenting what areas need to change or go? Download our FREE Not To-Do List, which will help you identify stuff that causes you stress, distracts you, should be delegated to others, or things that deserve a solid “no”. Be real with yourself when you complete this list!

Enjoy the journey, with love!         

Disclaimer: This material is for informational purposes only. It does not replace the advice or counsel of a doctor or health care professional. You should consult with, and rely only on the advice of, your physician or health care professional.