What Forces Are Holding You Down?

The diagnosis of a chronic or life-altering illness leaves most of us dazed and confused.  Shifting our consciousness to health and wellness may be new to you and for those of you who have had this on your mind, the thoughts become more intense.  After the diagnosis it takes commitment to work toward getting better or well. It never ceases to amaze me how many times I hear people ask what it takes to get the obstacles or challenges out-of-the-way.  Really what they’re asking me is, “How can I lift the forces that are holding me down?”

Have you ever heard the phrase, “We’re our own worst enemy?”  I bring that up because it’s too easy to shift the locus of control to external forces.  What if we made a shift and asked, “How am I holding myself down?”  There was a book that came out many years ago that speaks to this issue, “You can’t afford the luxury of a negative thought.”  Negative thoughts are certainly one of the forces that would be holding you down.  Believe it or not, negative thoughts are very heavy.  They feel like a ton of bricks.  The problem is that we’re a culture that seems to thrive on negativity.  One of the things over the past few years has been a move toward positive affirmations, positive thinking, and empowerment.  These are some of the things that can lighten the load.

Another huge force that holds many of us down is isolation.  We’ve become so busy that we don’t take the time to connect with others.  Social networking attempts to create connection, but virtual connections only carry us so far.  We’re social animals and we need connection.  Having in-person social interactions allows us to experience things with people in real-time.  We get to share of ourselves to others and reap the rewards of the sharing from others.  This is one of the reasons that following a diagnosis, a support group is so important on your journey to wellness.

I believe that another way to lift the forces that may be holding you down is believing in what’s possible.  What’s possible is maximizing the things you can control.  You engage a medical team that you believe will provide you with the best possible treatment possible.  Having faith in your medical team is a force that can lift you up instead of holding you down.  Engaging your body, mind, spirit connection will fortify your inner strength.  When you feel empowered you make better decisions and that can’t help but lift you up.

The first step in lifting the forces you feel may be holding you down is believing that you have some control over those forces.  Make it a point to exercise your voice in all aspects of your life.  Question everything!  Feeling empowered is good for the soul!