Inner Peace
- kscounsellingbc
- Jul 7, 2023
- 4 min read
Between things like family, work, relationships, and the broader world around us competing for our attention & energy, it’s no wonder it can be challenging to feel at peace much of the time. Are you curious how much lighter, calmer and emotionally balanced you might feel if you took steps to protect your peace?
How many days start something like this: grab the phone to turn off your alarm, next thing you know you find yourself consumed with some negative news headline or you take a little scroll through instagram/facebook and start to feel thoughts subconsciously creep in, something like: how come all these other people seem so much happier and put together than I am, why does everyone seem to have more money, a better job, a healthier relationship, more fun...
Our peace can also be affected by interacting with people who bring chaos, treat others poorly, make us feel badly about ourselves or who intentionally/unintentionally trigger traumatic memories or feelings for us
Would you agree that it takes a concerted effort to protect your peace with all that is going on around you?
Why is it important to cultivate a sense of peace in our lives?
Think of a time when your thoughts & life felt a bit out of control. How did that feel? How did you recover, or have you?
Being in a stressed mental state for a prolonged period of time has the potential to have a widespread negative impact on your body, research shows that sustained stress is often at the root of many chronic diseases!
The antithesis of peace is chaos the more we lose grip on peace, the closer we move towards chaos.
Aiming for inner peace could be the key to a healthy brain and body
Some might assume we can only experience peace when life is free of troubles, but that does not have to be the case. Our outlook and mindset can influence how we perceive and manage the inevitable challenges in life.
Below we will explore 3 ways to create more peace in our life, there are many more, but this is a great place to start
1. Practice mindfulness
There are many ways to accomplish this, I will offer you one way, that I find works well for me, and many of the clients I have worked with, accomplished by asking a series of questions and giving yourself time to answer them without feeling too rushed, but not taking too much of your time 2-3 mins tops.
Setting aside a few moments at the start of the day to check in with yourself, and ask: How am I feeling about the day ahead, what do I need today? What am I most grateful for today? Notice what comes up, and allow yourself to acknowledge it, without judgment.
next, with the information you gathered in the previous exercise (again this need only take a couple of minutes) set an intention for the day.
This looks like a frame of mind, or mindset that you wish to carry forward into your interactions, to help you navigate the day.
An example of an intention that I have used recently is
I will be patient with myself and others today.
Here is a bit more info about setting intentions, and how they differ from goals
2. Get out in Nature
There is an abundance of research that has shown a relationship between improved health, mood and outlook when humans spend time connecting with nature.
Grab a friend (or your furry friend) and head outdoors. Whatever activity you enjoy, try to enjoy it outdoors whenever possible.
What I have found works best for me is a 30 minute walk first thing in the morning right when I wake up in the warmer months, and I go on my lunch break in the cooler months. You will figure out what works best for your schedule. Try to get outdoors as many times a week as you can.
Perhaps try something new?
plant a small container garden, try geocaching, bird watching, visit a park you have not been to
3. Find and reduce sources of chronic stress
Ok, so this can be a bit of a tough one
Only you can identify what is causing you the most stress, and determine what can be done about it.
Sometimes we need to take a close look at what/who in our life is robbing us of the peace we need. Maybe it's a matter of setting firmer boundaries, or creating space/distance with certain people.
Maybe it's cleaning up the clutter that plagues your home, or creating a plan to complete a task that you have been putting off?
There is a bit more info on this topic on my blog posts here
and here
You deserve to feel at peace & its within your reach with small, simple (Notice I say simple - not easy, see the difference there?) changes such as those described in this post.
If you desire more peace in your life, and feel you would benefit from some additional support and guidance in this area, reach out to myself, or a licensed therapist who has experience and knowledge to assist you.
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