Be prepared to have your mind blown!
Well, I can tell you that the average person has between 2,500 and 3,300 thoughts PER HOUR. Yes, I said per hour…so if we average 3,000/hour and say we are awake 16 hours a day (yes, you should try for 8 hours of sleep)…that is 48,000 thoughts per day – FOURTY EIGHT THOUSAND. When I looked this up, the hamsters on that wheel in my head felt like they sped up a little. I mean – WOW, just Wow! And crazy that this is on the low end, some studies show up to 80,000 thoughts per day. What do we possibly do with all of that information swirling in our head? No wonder why most of us subscribe to the ‘Something Shiny’ theory – we are inundated with thoughts!
Now because I like to take things one step further, do you ever consider the person you are talking to at any given moment (your child, partner, teacher, parent, boss, employee, grocery store checker, etc.) has the same amount of thoughts running through their brain AND they aren’t inside your head – neither of you have a clue of what the other is thinking or dealing with internally. Perhaps they are snippy with you or checked out…uhhh, they may have 100 thoughts running through their mind as you are speaking to them. You may be having an amazing day and they may be struggling today. Perspective ya’ll…PERSPECTIVE!
Once again, I’m dished perspective (I’m beginning to be grateful for my word of the year). This isn’t permission to be rude or mean to others, it’s just another way to look at things. If the person you are talking to snaps back at you or you feel isn’t listening, you can kindly ask ‘do you have something on your mind’, ‘can we chat when you have a few minutes to be fully present’, ‘I know my mind is completely overwhelmed, how are YOU feeling’. Compassion guys…let’s all give grace to ourselves as well as others. You never know the mental obstacles someone may be experiencing. Perhaps you dive in and find healthy ways to clear your mind.
I practice a good amount of those things mentioned above, but one of my favorites is a good ole brain dump. I try to do this once a week. Do you ever do a brain dump? I am a pen and paper kind of girl. If I put a note in my phone, the odds of me seeing it again are quite slim. If it isn’t written down and in front of my face, it’s not happening. A good brain dump is good for your mental state too – get it out of your head and on paper and GET IT DONE! Here are a few ideas to get you started…
Just about everyone I talk says that they have one million and one things on their mind. Two things – figure out how to best work through that, so you don’t make yourself crazy AND secondly, have some empathy and compassion for others…they are in your same boat, just different paddles (or potentially no paddles at all).
Writing this blog is such a beautiful part of my healing process and I truly hope it helps you in some way…even just a tiny bit. As always, thank you for being on this journey with me – together we can make a difference in our own lives and in the lives of others. Cheers!
