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BUILD SELF AWARENESS FOR MENTAL HEALTH


Tuesday held a chaotic day at the day job. The kind that used to push me over the edge and lead me to self harm, to break things or to lash out at my wife. Despite all of that, I was able to remain detached emotionally, stay objective and take action on the things I can control. I was able to (at least I hope they received it this way) treat all of my coworkers with respect and care, and try to do what I can to help them out despite being dealt a tough hand for the day.


These are the days that I've learned to appreciate. These are the days that show me that I have beaten this illness. I always wanted to be the person who could keep his head while losing his shirt. To be clear, plenty of moments slip past the goalie, but my record is overwhelmingly positive. And that's a lot better than winning zero days.


In last week's newsletter, I touched on overtraining. The day after I sent it, I started to notice some signs of overtraining showing up for me. I was getting crabby and anxious. I realized there were several factors. I wasn't sleeping great despite being in bed plenty, I was training a LOT and went pretty hard over the weekend. Lots of skating and Jiu Jitsu, lifting and walking. I also felt pretty crazy, bloated and inflamed after the food I ate at the State Fair despite it being fairly clean (went turkey leg, pork chop on a stick, kombucha filled with fresh fruit, grilled peach with goat cheese and honey) and pretty much in line with my diet. I spent a cheat meal out there, but barely. At least on paper. Lastly, had some end-of-long-weekend anxiety. Stack some inflammation, poor sleep, a beaten down body and end-of-weekend together, and those are the perfect conditions for some disordered thinking to arise.


I identified it immediately. I knew right away that I was feeling off. Quick analysis of what had lead up to it, and I knew exactly the steps to take. Dial back, focus on some stretching, hydration and recovery. Hit the sauna and cold shower. Breathwork. Get a good night of sleep. I took a Labor Day nap, too. Very, very unusual. But I needed it.


These things reminded me of the importance of self awareness. None of the things I mentioned above would have been possible without it. It wasn't until I broke things down in my life that I understood how much difference little things make. When I have unidentified anxiety, it means that something is off. When I peel away the layers, there is always something there. Certain conditions will lead you to feel good. Certain conditions will lead you to feel crabby.


It also has given me the ability to notice the warning signs of when things are headed toward disaster, so I can nip it in the bud. My therapist and I used to use an analogy of a plane on a runway. It's a lot easier to stop the plane while it's speeding along the runway than once it takes off. Self awareness has helped me to catch things on the runway.


HOW TO BUILD SELF AWARENESS

There's not a better method than to journal. A good starting place is to just document when you are buzzing (feel good) and when you feel crabby. Jot down these moments and a few thoughts on why it might be occurring.


Some questions/prompts to get you started dissecting:

  • What am I doing right now?

  • What did I do before this?

  • Was there a specific moment that triggered this?

  • How has my sleep been?

  • How has my stress been?

  • How has my diet been?

  • How are my relationships?

  • How has my exercise and movement been?

  • How much sunlight have I been getting?


Before long, you'll start to notice patterns. Then the work starts.


BUILD AN ACTION PLAN

Now that we've started to build some self awareness and identify patterns, we can start to put steps together to create more of the good conditions while avoiding the bad conditions.


  • How can you structure your life, schedule and environment to build more of those good conditions?

  • How can you do the same to reduce the conditions that lead you to feel crabby?


Some examples for me:


PATTERN: Writing makes me feel really really good. Once I get going, I start to lose track of time, get into a flow state, and feel a buzz.

ACTION: I decided to build writing into my 75 Hard for Mental Health challenge. Writing one newsletter each week.


PATTERN: When I start my days early, I have a much higher chance of having a good day. It gives me time to get my head bolted on straight and get my body moving.

ACTION: I wake up early.


PATTERN: When I don't sleep well, or don't sleep enough, my chances of having a bad day increase dramatically.

ACTION: Go to bed and wake up +/- .5 hour each day to keep a consistent sleep schedule. This ensures I get enough sleep and that it's high quality.


PATTERN: When I take a cold shower and go for a run with my dog outside, my odds of having a good day skyrocket, provided I'm not overtraining.

ACTION: I do this 3 times per week. But, we do it every other day, with rucking in between, and we run slow. This makes sure I'm not overtrained and keeps me getting the benefits. I also built daily cold showers into my 75 Hard for Mental Health challenge and have been having awesome results.


Do you have any questions on this article? Do you have any topics you'd like to see covered in the future? Email me at jack@leaveitcinders.com and let me know!


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