Therapist Jessica Booth provides a brief introduction on how to find contentment in daily life and feed your spirit! Try these tips to feel more present and rejuvenated in your every day life.
Jun 11th, 2019
How often do you feel like you struggle to find happiness in day to day life? You wouldn’t really call yourself ‘depressed’, but you don’t necessarily consider yourself extremely joyful or satisfied either? How often would you say you feel “bogged down” by the day to day and just don’t feel like you are living your best life?
It seems like today’s world often thrives on negativity, arguments on social media about politics, cyber and workplace bullying, and an ever-pressing need to “keep up with the Jones”. This never-ending cycle of negativity often leads to hurt feelings, anger and outrage, or sometimes even a lack of motivation for even getting out of bed in the morning. What’s the point? It’s just going to be the same thing every day, nothing ever changes. Right?
Ask Yourself:
- What if all of these environmental stressors and negativity which are causing your disappointment in your life could be altered just by making a few changes in your day?
- What if your spirits are low because you have been unable to feed it what it needs for so long?
- What If I told you that there was a way that you can find contentment in day to day life and feed your spirit that so desperately needs nurturing despite all of these environmental factors?
It’s true! And the reality is, it can be pretty simple once you practice and get used to it.
Here are four ways that you can actually find joy and contentment in each day:
1. Recognize your strengths. Take a moment each morning when you wake up, and make a few quick bullet points in your journal. What are 3 strengths that you have that you would like to utilize to make your day better? Maybe it’s that you are a great organizer, or maybe you are a fantastic “people person” and enjoy helping others. Whatever you feel your strengths are, write them down- and figure out how you can purposefully and intentionally add them into your day each day.
2. Allow yourself to feel grateful. We often get chastised or told that we are being prideful for mentioning that we are grateful for the things and people in our lives. It is actually very healthy for you to feel grateful and to feel free to express that gratitude! You can express it in your own personal journal, you can reflect on it on your own while driving, you can even express your gratitude to your partner or family members! You do not have to express those things in a boastful way, and you do not have to post it all over social media to “prove” to others that you are grateful, but it is so important to our overall contentment to recognize the things that matter to you most. This does not simply mean material items, either. This could also entail your family relationships, friendships, transportation, financial stability, job security, hobbies, pets, travel, almost anything in your life that brings you joy! You could write those things down in your journal each week and even add new things to your list as you discover them. We often realize that we have a lot more than we first considered once we start to look for things to feel grateful for in our daily lives.
3. Learn to be present in the moment. This is often difficult for those of us who suffer from anxiety or have tremendous amounts of stress and pressure in our daily lives. Being present in the day means cutting out all of our other thoughts and distractions and allowing our minds to be at peace. This is often helpful in grounding our minds and helping us to recognize what is most important in our day. Some people need assistance in the beginning with learning how to cut off all other distractions, which is totally normal! In these instances, there are many tools that you can utilize to help you become more present. Mindfulness and meditation apps on smart phones are very popular and can be very helpful in this process. Additionally, there are other tools such as deep breathing exercises and progressive muscle relaxation exercises that can be useful in relaxing both the body and mind to help you become more present and focused.
4. Practice regular self-care. Self care is another tool that often gets chastised as being unnecessary or a ‘waste of time’. In reality, utilizing self-care techniques can be crucial in developing your self-worth, decreasing anxiety, improving symptoms of depression, and improves motivation to continue throughout the day. Self-care can vary greatly between taking a short 5 minutes to yourself to relax after a hard day, participating in a fun exercise class, taking a nice bubble bath in the evening to relax, or even taking a weekend golf trip with your friends. One important thing to note is that self-care must be very specific to your personal needs and interests. Something that a friend or family member does for self-care may not have the same affect on you. Being very intentional about what you do for self-care and how you utilize this tool can be essential in the overall scheme of finding contentment and feed your inner spirit.
Following these four tips can make a world of difference in your overall feeling of contentment and joy in your day to day life. Some of these tips might be easier for some than for others, but each of these tips can be catered to the individual to help you develop your own plan of wellness and nourish your spirit. Once you develop your own specific plan, you will find that your spirit begins to feel refreshed and you might find some comfort in peace that you never realized you could achieve.
If you feel like you might need some further guidance on how you can individualize these steps to your life, feel free to contact me at CPCH to schedule an appointment and create a treatment plan. Everyone deserves contentment in their lives. Let’s work together to take back your day and focus on what’s important, YOU!
Jessica Booth, LMFT, LCAS-A
Psychotherapist, CPCH
Jessica Booth, LMFT, LCAS-AJessica Booth, LMFT, LCAS-A is an experienced psychotherapist who treats every member of the family. She is a full-time, integrated member of the CPCH team and works with patients individually, as a couple, as a family, or in a support group. Jessica is available to work with individually with both patients seeing a psychiatrist for medications and patients who do not currently need psychiatric medications. At CPCH, Jessica specializes in: couples relationships, discernment therapy (in regards to divorce), family therapy, children with Attention Deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and depression. She also works with individuals, specializing in: phase of life issues, depression, anxiety, mood disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, and substance abuse. Jessica also helps to coach and support individuals through difficult challenges in life such as a loss of a job, grieving the loss of a loved one, or even adjusting to being a new mom.