Dawn of the Dread
It may sound like the latest Netflix Zombie Horror Boxset but the “Dawn of the Dread” could be something you have a starring role in.
You open your eyes and as you wake you see the sunrise and then comes the dawning of the dread day ahead.
The great American writer Ann Tyler said “we are all enduring something” and who can’t relate to that?
Some days it can take me three hours to turn around my mood from floor to soar. At the start of the day, it sometimes seems an impossibility. Then after some deep work, I am swanning, floating and coping.
Waking up feeling scared and sad can be very common.
But oh the woe is weighty, the body heavy and the shoulder doesn’t want to meet the boulder of the load ahead. The duvet seems a good retreat but it’s not an option. So what do we need to know when life seems hard and the mood is lower than a dachshund’s tum?
The most important thing is to remember this situation is temporary. Even though it feels like it’s tattooed on the soul after some night you wished to forget if you could only remember it in the first place. Moods are mutable and moveable and things can and will get better.
On a day to day basis try to think of three things ahead, before you get out of bed, that you want to happen or you can create and look forward to. A coffee on your favourite park bench, listening to music or an inspiring audible book or a lovely evening meal. Nature contains its own Prozac so get out and let the wind and sun on your face put life in perspective, mindfully listen to the birds, stop to look at and smell the flowers. Know what will make you happy and top yourself up with both hands and with responsible selfishness.
- Journalling – even if you don’t know what to write jot down how you are feeling to name and tame those negative emotions. Draw a picture of them.
- Write down things you are truly grateful for. Keep a blessings book.
- When we are in sadness we are looking backwards. When we are anxious we are looking forward. Be in the NOW. There is peace in the now. Let it be and settle into the day.
- Put your trust in something higher. God, Spirit, The Universe, Natural Rhythms, Gaia, a Greater Conscience that has your back, is dealing with your pain (a sort of Cosmic Customer Services) and is working it all out for the best for you. Trust it.
- Be patient. Patience is a superpower and delivers its own answers.
- You don’t always have to take action. Let things unfold.
- Forget carbs avoid “barbs” – annoying people/ stressful situations and find a safe place to relax and retreat.
- Daydream about the things that really light you up and take one step towards it. Repeat often.
- You are not alone.
