If suffering is universal and a part of the human condition, how do we get better at managing it? How do we soothe ourselves and feel more in control of our own feelings of health and well-being? What can we do to help ourselves feel better?

Build resiliency.

Resiliency to suffering, resiliency to stress are skills that we can all learn.  The very first step is recognizing that we can all get better at it. There is hope for all of us.

The reasons for our suffering are very personal and each of us has our own triggers but the intervention to help soothe suffering is always the same…we must focus on what we want, not what we don’t want. This is going to sound like a trick but it isn’t. Our minds can not picture the lack of something (please see earlier posts on neuroplasticity and epigenetics).

For example, if I say to myself:

“I don’t want that donut, I don’t want that donut, I don’t want that donut”.

My mind will only be able to picture a donut; never the absence of donuts.

Instead, try thinking to yourself:

“I am the kind of person who enjoys foods that nourish my body”. “I know what foods help me feel good about myself”.

When we practice focusing on what we want, we build new neuropathways to the image of what we want for ourselves.

This practice can be effective with most anything that causes suffering or stress and is both the art and science of Mind-Body Medicine.

It takes some practice but try it and let us know how it goes.

Thank you! Be well!

Cheryl