To Make Your Life More Peaceful
Source: Power of Positivity
Posts tagged with “peaceful”
How to Draw Your Own Happiness Map & Follow It to Bliss
“Happiness is a direction, not a place.” ~Sydney J. Harris
Cars played a big part in my life growing up in Southern California. As a kid, there was a succession of crappy old station wagons that routinely broke down on the highway because we couldn’t afford anything better.
I remember Dad standing helplessly outside in traffic as drivers slowed down to gawk at us, then sped up as they drove on into their lives.
And the rusted green ’42 Chevy pickup truck my grandfather taught me to drive years before it was legal to do so, gears grinding when I …
How Accepting Anxiety Can Lead to Peace
“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
My unwillingness to accept my anxiety disorder (there, I said it, I have a disorder) results in panic.
It results in waking up at night, heart racing, body tingling and trembling.
It results in driving down the road in a thunderstorm thinking I am having a heart attack—but I just keep driving and talking to my beloved on the phone because “if I can just keep driving away from it, it will be okay.”…
9 Tips To Tame Your Temper: Anger Management Made Easy
“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.” ~Mark Twain
I am in serious danger, and I think you might be too.
I am in danger of becoming a grumpy old person. I get angry easily. I operate on a short fuse, ready to snap or explode at the littlest thing.
I could blame it on a combination of genetics and environment. My father seems to have only two moods, and one of them is angry.
He is like a volcano and can …
Connecting with Your Peaceful Self to Overcome Fears and Worries
“Fear: False Evidence Appearing Real.” ~Unknown
It was an ordinary school morning in a busy European city. I seem to recall it was spring, as my memories store the feeling of awakening after a long winter.
I was seventeen and getting ready to go to school. Following my standard morning routine, which included eating my meticulously assembled breakfast, I walked to the tram station.
The city I lived in at the time was situated in a beautiful valley, and the tram ride offered a trip to the hub of the city. My high school was downtown in the historical part …
How To Be The Best Version Of You A Lot More Often
“In chaos, there is fertility.” ~Anaïs Nin
Are you a calm creature in your yoga class, then you get home and yell at your kids?
Do you ever read a really inspirational book or blog and think, “Yes! That makes total sense, and I’m going to start doing that!” Then life gets busy and it never quite happens?
Do you ever feel like you’re two different people living in the same body? Saying one thing, doing another?
Me too.
For the past fifteen years I’ve been a self-development junkie.
I’ve read tons of books and I’ve attended courses and …
6 Effective Practices for a Peaceful, Positive Mind
“To ensure good health: eat lightly, breathe deeply, live moderately, cultivate cheerfulness, and maintain an interest in life.” ~William Londen
We often focus on nourishing our bodies, with fitness and nutritious food, and forget that to function at our optimal level and experience overall well-being, it is equally important to nourish our minds.
Years ago I wasn’t doing either, and eventually I got stuck, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Physically, I had low energy; mentally, I was not growing; and emotionally, I was bored, resentful, and lost passion for life.
Life became a monotonous routine. I got lost in …
5 Ways to Let Go of Worries So You Can Be Light and Free
“I vow to let go of all worries and anxiety in order to be light and free.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
Our daughter is seeing a counselor to help her deal with anxiety. She’s only ten. Cue mother guilt.
There are a whole lot of (mostly crazy) worries running around her little head, some that even I can’t wrap my head around. So I wrap my arms around her and reassure her that things will be okay.
I give her permission to be anxious, but try to instill resilience so she won’t worry so much. I try to teach her mindfulness …
Dealing with Depression: 10 Ways to Feel Positive and Peaceful
“Once you choose hope, anything is possible.” ~Christopher Reeve
I have suffered from depression since I was a teenager. My experiences have also caused severe post-traumatic stress disorder.
My father has been abandoning me for my whole life. As a teenager, I went to live with him because my relationship with my mother was so difficult. He sexually abused me for the year that I lived with him.
At the age of seventeen, I sought solace by turning to what I thought was God. For the next twenty-eight years I held a set of beliefs that were angry and judgmental …
20 Ways Sitting in Silence Can Completely Transform Your Life
“Silence is a source of great strength.” ~Lao Tzu
For over two years I spent one out of every four weeks in silence. At the time I was living at a Zen Monastery and every month we would have a week-long silent retreat.
During this retreat we sat meditation in silence, ate in silence, worked in silence, and only communicated through hand gestures and written notes.
At first living like this was hard, but over time I learned to grow to appreciate silence. By the time I left I learned that silence was my friend and teacher.
What did silence …
The Power of Surrendering: Let Go of Control to Be Peaceful and Free
“The reality is that tomorrow is most certainly uncertain and no matter how many expectations we form, tomorrow will come, tomorrow will go, and it will be what it will be.” ~Lori Deschene
I have never known how to surrender to just about anything. Surrendering is giving up control, and this is something I have never been good at doing.
From an early age I coped with tension and negativity by trying to will things to be different. This caused me a great deal of anxiety because trying to will anything to go your way is not only exhausting, …
How Taking Quiet Time for Yourself Helps People Around You
“I wish I could show you, when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing light of your own being.” ~Hafiz of of Shiraz
“What I wouldn’t give for a few moments of silence.”
“I really should start meditating.”
“I know it’s important to take breaks, but I just don’t have time.”
We’ve all heard (or made) comments like these at some point. Implicit in these statements is the idea that resting in stillness is beneficial…for the individual.
But what if such a practice of peace is more than that? What if it’s beneficial for others in your family, your …
3 Simple Steps To Stop Worry In Its Tracks
“Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow. It only saps today of its joy.” ~Leo Buscaglia
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been the worrywart extraordinaire.
Worry: verb: To give way to anxiety or unease; allow one’s mind to dwell on difficulty or troubles.
Fret, be anxious, brood, stress, panic.
If worry came with a degree, mine would be a PhD.
As a child I worried about my schoolwork. I worried if other kids would laugh, or not, as the case may be. I worried if I’d pass the test, miss the bus, make the team, or fall …
4 Tools to Reframe Stress to Feel Less Overwhelmed
“I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind.” ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Stress, strain, tension, worry, overwhelm, nerves, feeling wound up, freaking out. Whatever we call it, the effects are universal.
Our adrenals rev up, uneasy thoughts cycle on the brain’s hamster wheel, butterflies flitter in the stomach, our moods swing. There are many different ways that stress manifests, and none of them are particularly enjoyable.
Stress is basically an emotion. It’s the way we feel when things aren’t going our way. “Things” can be as insignificant as feeling annoyed because we woke up two minutes …
3 Reasons to Stop Trying So Hard to Be Positive and Peaceful
“Freedom is instantaneous the moment we accept things as they are.” ~Karen Maezen Miller
The world is filled with people who work hard at being positive, peaceful, and more spiritual and then feel bad when they don’t measure up. I know because I used to be one of them. And I still am from time to time.
That was before I realized something:
1 It doesn’t work.
2. Spirituality isn’t something you do; it’s something you are, and you are this right now. Just as beneath the chatter of your mind you are already positive and peaceful too.
3. You …
How to Find Peace When You Feel Scared About What Might Happen
“Uncertainty is the only certainty there is, and knowing how to live with insecurity is the only security.” ~John Allen Paulos
I was in shock for about ten minutes after hearing the news, afraid while lying on the procedure table, and relieved when it was over.
Six months ago I had a mammogram. My checkup was supposed to be for a general mammogram—the one you get when you turn forty—but when I got there and told the technician that two days ago I had discovered a small bump in my right breast, the prescription was changed to a diagnostic …
Feng Shui Basics: How Your Space Can Affect Your Mood
“The light is what guides you home, the warmth is what keeps you there.” ~Ellie Rodriguez
One day I came home and just sat in my driveway for a while, wondering why I wasn’t happy about going inside my house. I wasn’t depressed, and I had a loving relationship with my family.
Even though I was married to the love of my life and just had a beautiful baby boy who I couldn’t wait to see every day after a long day of work, something about coming home was simply unpleasant, and it irked me that I wasn’t able …
Create Peace by Imagining a World Beyond It
“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.” ~Dalai Lama
What comes after peace? Have you ever stopped to think about this?
We spend so much of our time and energy working to attain both inner and global peace, but have we ever stopped to think about what this really means?
What is on the other side of peace?
Twice in my life, I have broken a board with my bare hand.
There is one simple rule to this technique. You must not focus on breaking the board but rather on breaking through …
Finding Peace: Take Power Away from Your Thoughts and Emotions
“Slow down and everything you are chasing will come around and catch you.” ~John De Paola
My almost three year old, Willow, is obsessed with playing doctor.
She lies on the couch, hands down at her sides. She hands me a small flashlight and a toy frying pan (which I’m told to pretend is a stethoscope) and orders, “Check me out, Doctor Mommy!”
She methodically points out every scratch, scrape, bruise, and freckle on her body. She tells me how much snot she feels in her nose and how many times she coughed, sneezed, and hiccupped that day so that …
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