We all believe we have control over our life, enough to make daily decisions to influence it for the better. But when we reach the extent of that control, have we learned to let go?
In the midst of the surrounding chaos many of us have found ourselves in quite a conundrum. With the lack of social interactions and external distractions, we are left to deal with what’s been eating away at our minds head-on.
There are things we can and cannot control in life. Many of us accept this to be true, yet our actions and mindsets show otherwise. Pandemics are one of those things we can’t control. Some of us are thriving during this quarantine, while some of us are just barely surviving. One of the “5 Thieves of Happiness” is the concept of control. When we try to control every outcome and every action, we are failing to embrace things as they are. Whether it’s a loss of income due to unemployment, loss of ways to burn off steam at the gym, or loss of those conversations when you need someone to vent to, you have started to feel like you’ve lost control of your emotional state, much less your life.
The reason why so many of us are upset is because we feel like we have lost control—control of stuff we never really had control over in the first place, and this proves it. This is your convoluted sense of control, and it’s time to dismiss your confused discernment.
It’s hard to deal with this lack of control, much less recognize it and work through it. Sufferance is said to be the result of human kind’s reluctance to embrace the inevitability of happenings. What’s the key? Acceptance is the secret to having peace of mind. Take action on the things you can control, such as taking care of your mind and body. Eat healthy, exercise, do something to stimulate your mind and soul.
However, my advice isn’t simply to recognize this lack of control, make a couple changes and move on with your life. If there’s anything I’ve learned during this quarantine it’s that it’s okay. It’s okay to be human and feel your feelings. They are warranted. You can’t control everything and it sucks. Wouldn’t life be so much better if we could? Well no, there in lies all the beauty of life’s journey. Although I’ve studied psychology and I know to an extent what my schema and ego are going through, it still remains a process you must accept and fully understand to be able to learn from.
Don’t feel ashamed by those “Productive Pattys” on social platforms giving you tips to be your most productive self while cooped up at home. Your emotional state of understanding is just that—yours.
You know what’s best for you? You know what’s best for you.
Listen to yourself. Listen to your intuition instead of succumbing to the endless numbing of social outings, happy hours and anything and everything else that distracts you from listening to what’s going on inside. Focus on what you can truly control, and surrender the rest to your journey and your process.
How are you dealing? What’s been getting you through this quarantine? Does anyone else feel the unnecessary pressure to be productive?
“If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind too.”
Another shoutout to my mom for sending me this quote 🙂 #MomsKnowBest
For a related article on how to get through the “boredom” of quarantine, I wrote this article about how to love the repetition of life: https://wiseandshinezine.com/2020/01/10/how-to-love-the-repetition-of-life/
My personal blog can be found here: http://www.poemsandprose.travel.blog