On your list of things to do today, how far down that list is doing something for yourself, something that nourishes you? Are you even on that list? It’s really common for us to get caught up in the busyness of life and the list of things that ‘must’ be done. This is where the feelings of guilt can come in, how dare we prioritise ourselves over our children/spouses/work/friends/family or something vital on that big list of tasks? So, we concentrate on getting through that list, and making sure everyone else’s needs are met, and start it all again the next day, and the next….
This constant minimising, or dismissing our own needs can lead to anxiety, depression, stress, burnout and overwhelm because we are so disconnected from our needs that we have learnt not to listen when our bodies are shouting out STOP! This can often be in the form of tense shoulders, chronic pain, headaches, low energy – sound familiar?
Another problem is that sometimes stopping can feel really uncomfortable as that’s when some thoughts and feelings might creep in that have been kept at bay by the distraction of all of the busyness. It makes perfect sense for that voice in our heads to tell us to keep going, keep busy, keep ourselves safe from those uncomfortable thoughts/feelings.
Does this resonate with you? This is where counselling can really help to unpick and understand the beliefs and feelings associated with this behaviour and help to raise our awareness so that we can make a change. Counselling is not an easy process, but it really is worthwhile, and can help us to make changes that improve our quality of life and last a lifetime. Counselling can really be seen as the ultimate act of being self-kind as it gives us space to explore what’s really going on for us, and what we need. It’s not selfish to have needs and to prioritise them, if we don’t do that and end up burnt out and overwhelmed, we really won’t be able to support the other people in our lives as we would hope to.
If you’d like to know more about how counselling can help you, please get in touch and book a FREE initial telephone consultation with one of our friendly team of therapists.
