People will often confide in me when they are starting care that they have a poor self-image. Few things can be more devastating to one’s mental, emotional and physical health than low self-esteem. Our self-image plays such an important role in our happiness, our health, our relationships and our general success in navigating through life. I want everyone to understand that you are not alone when it comes to negative self-talk and beliefs. To some degree, everyone suffers with a limiting image and belief about their value, worth and abilities.
Our internal dialogue is the most important determinant of our joy, our success, our health and our own personal power. How we speak to ourselves is a clear window into our consciousness, our thots and beliefs. Too often, our internal dialogue is centred around the negative. Our faults, short-comings, inadequacies and failures become the centre piece of our day to day, moment to moment conversation we have with ourselves. We entertain fears and worries, we begin to believe that we aren’t good enough, we could never do this or that, we don’t have the ability or skills to achieve our goals which we then relegate to pipe dreams. Procrastination and self-abuse becomes a coping mechanism to deal with all the limitations we’ve constructed about ourselves.
We create a paradigm or structure of thinking and beliefs that imprisons us around these beliefs. We sold ourselves a story about ourselves that locks us into places we do not want to be. Many of the self-limiting, denigrating beliefs we hold about ourselves may have a kernel of truth within them but they certainly aren’t the whole story.
If we are to break out of the old, negative, self-limiting paradigms we’ve constructed it will require a new, empowering set of belief systems about ourselves. Before we can create new beliefs it’s important to get an idea of what our limiting beliefs are and how often we entertain them. A powerful yet simple exercise to identify them is to consciously listen to how you’re speaking to yourself. For example you may get the idea that you’d like to become a chiropractor and help people to achieve greater health and wellbeing. You think being a chiropractor would be lots of fun teaching people about health and would provide an awesome lifestyle. Next thing you know you’re telling yourself, “Don’t be stupid, you could never be a chiropractor. You’re not smart enough to get through all that study and besides you don’t have the time or money to get through school. You’re always broke and wouldn’t have the money to pay for school anyway. And what would your family say about you becoming a chiropractor; they all think its witch craft.”
Step 1- Identify your negative self-talk and beliefs
I. Choose a day and time frame that you will focus your mind on watching and listening to the thoughts you are entertaining. This could be a couple of hours one morning or you could devote an entire day.
II. Make note of the frequency and content of the limiting or denigrating thoughts you are having about yourself and your abilities. Listen and evaluate carefully as our thinking can be quite insidious and you may not even catch the ways you are holding yourself down.
III. Pay attention to how you’re feeling. Any tension, anxiety, fear or upset in the body is a good indication that your mind is focusing on something that is not supporting your greater good.
IV. Keep a journal so you can write down the re-occurring thoughts and patterns. Take notes about how these thots make you feel.
V. Congratulate yourself for making the effort to uncover unpleasantries about yourself. This is not easy or fun. Don’t beat yourself up either as you’ve just taken a major step towards change.
Make it a point to do the exercise often. You will become more aware of your negative self-talk, catching yourself regularly. Keep a journal of your negative thoughts. Don’t beat yourself up for thinking this way. For now, just be curious as to why you think the way you do.
Step 2- Reframe your negative self-talk with the “10 Minute Practice”
I. Take 10 minutes every day to perform this practice.
II. Find a quiet time and space so you have no interruptions.
III. Take the negative thoughts you’ve been uncovering and write down the exact opposite statement. With the Chiropractic example above you may say, “I am smart enough and have the time to become a chiropractor.” or “I have all the money I need to do the things I want including attending University to become a chiropractor.”
IV. Before you start you can ask yourself for all the negative thoughts you’ve had for the day and again write the polar opposite.
V. For this practice you do not have to believe what you are saying as true or even want it to necessarily be true. Just write out the affirmative.
VI. For this exercise write rather than type on your computer as this will help you access the parts of your brain you used when you were a child learning to write.
VII. After a few days or weeks of performing this exercise you will start to recognise patterns of negative or limiting thinking.
Our language is revealing. It is a window into our thoughts. Our thoughts expose our beliefs. Our beliefs dictate our life. If you continually berate, belittle and abuse yourself in your head, it will lead to terrible harm. Negative, fearful and stinking thinking drives your fight or flight system, an ingenious mechanism designed to save your life in times of great stress. However, if your fight or flight system is engaged continually because of the programs you’re running in your head, it will make you sick. Negative thinking and stress are a major cause of subluxations or damage to your spine and nervous system.
Getting those negative, limiting thoughts out of your head and flipping the script will force you to think differently about yourself. You will be able to reprogram your thought processes to more empowering beliefs and self-talk. You will start to see the beauty and brilliance within you. You will continually speak about yourself in more positive and empowering ways. This will build feelings of joy, strength, power and peace. You will begin to take better care of yourself. You will make better choices for your health and happiness.
It ain’t easy but you’re worth the effort!
Our Mission
Turning our community on to the wonders of chiropractic and providing positive lifestyle choices for our chiropractic family to enhance their health and life.