Medicine Cabinet of the Mind
If I was standing inside your home with a headache and asked you for an ibuprofen would you have one? For most of us the answer is yes and it would be found in your medicine cabinet. Our medicine cabinets have all kinds of useful remedies depending upon what is ailing us.
If I cut my finger you would have a bandaid. Allergies are acting up? Zyrtec or Benadryl. We have well stocked medicine cabinets designed to provide self aid and relief for most minor medical issues. And yet what about the medicine cabinets of our minds? Do you have one of those? Since we seem hell bent on continuing to live through historically significant events maybe it’s time you designed one of your own.
The medicine cabinet of your mind doesn’t need to be filled with chemicals made in plants by pharmaceutical companies. No this can and should have a much holistic approach to it. Whenever I am consulting a client on what they should include in theirs I always narrow it to just three things. Here’s the question; what are the three items and/or exercises you could put within arms reach to self soothe when you become mentally hijacked?
My three things are…
- The Wim Hoff Breathing exercise. You can find this by downloading the Wim Hoff app on either the Apple App Store or Google Play Store
- Going for a 20-30 minute walk while listening to a podcast or audiobook
- HIIT exercises & equipment (kettlebells, sandbag, weighted vest)
Each of these three things are used based on the severity of my mental headache, where I am physically, and the amount of time I have. If shit is really bad, number three is the only thing that will save me. What I want you to notice is that none of these are using poison (alcohol, nicotine, or television) to cover up my symptoms. I would recommend you take a similar approach.
If Covid taught us anything it’s that mental health is serious and real. Design your own medicine cabinet of the mind so you too can relieve unwanted stress and anxiety in a healthy sustainable way.
