Mind Fitness - Week of 08/21/23

Mental mantra

This week’s training is a little different than anything I’ve prescribed in the past. Instead of a daily practice, I want you to spend as much time as necessary over the next seven days identifying your single most unhelpful mental pattern. Use any combination of meditation, journaling, etc., to figure out what harmful or destructive phrase you repeat in your head. Note that it might be a type of statement instead of a fixed set of words.

For example, I tend to assume the worst outcome of almost any scenario (catastrophizing). Because of this, I’ve taught my subconscious over the years that danger abounds, and it should always be on high alert. This has led to numerous chronic physical symptoms resulting from a dysregulated nervous system.

But this is not the way I am. It’s the way I’ve become through habitual action. If I want to change, I need an opposing mental mantra to utilize whenever I succumb to my old ways. I currently use “everything is OK.” It’s part of the script in Ben Ahren’s re-origin neural retraining, and I now “say” it to myself hundreds of times daily. That may seem silly, but it works. The ultimate goal is to make this my new instinctual response. I’m not there yet, but I’m making progress.

I want you to do the same thing. Craft an opposing mental expression to utilize whenever you internally narrate whatever useless crap you tell yourself. Remember that habits are the result of repetitive input. Take some time this week to identify your worst mental self-programming and start coding something better.

Level up your mental health:

• Subscribe to the RARE SENSE Substack.

• Subscribe to the RARE SENSE podcast on any major streaming platform and leave a five-star review if you love it.

• Subscribe to the RARE SENSE YouTube channel.

• Take the RARE SENSE Challenge.

• Connect with me on all major social media platforms @thischrisirwin.

• Invite me to speak about mind fitness to your organization by filling out the RARE SENSE contact form.

You can also support my work by purchasing RARE SENSE gear or sharing my content with others.

DISCLAIMER: RARE SENSE content is not medical advice. Nor does it represent the official position or opinions of any other organization or person. If you require diagnosis or treatment for a mental or physical issue or illness, please seek it from a licensed professional.