By Trevor Turner
The holiday break should be a time to rest, relax and enjoy ourselves while letting go of business for the time being. However, many struggle to balance the freedom of enjoyment while letting go of the list of responsibilities and potential problems we all endure with work. It’s great to have a job that funds our lives, but if work problems are always on your mind, it can leave you feeling more like a prisoner with a chain and link wrapped around your ankles.
Our mind can feel like a prison if we let it, and the mental health woes our country is experiencing are a reflection of this. I’m a true believer in owning your mindset, and over the years, through sheer determination, self-research, and discovery, I’ve developed mental health skills to manage it.
Anyone can do it, but it takes time, practice, and dedication. You truly have to want to better yourself, which is a tall order given the countless number of negative social and political distractions being portrayed in the media every day. As someone who works with the media, I wish there were more positive news stories hitting the zeitgeist, but that’s not the world we live in.
However, I’ve discovered that if you look for the good, you’ll find it just as easily as the bad if you seek it.
In order to escape from the mind shackles of work stress, you have to learn how to see your thoughts and acknowledge them as they come and go through your mind. Not every thought that floats through your beautiful or not-so-beautiful head is true, just like every thought isn’t wrong, but if you begin to notice your thoughts, you’ll acquire the ability to brush aside the garbage.
It’s not easy to do, but if you want to harness this ability and take out the trash, try practicing meditation, even if it’s for 1-3 minutes starting out. This will teach you how to control your mind rather than the negativity in the world feeding it.
Learn to let go:
I’ve learned that in life, we can’t control everything, no matter how much we wish we could. But for the things beyond our control that weigh on us, the best thing we can do is learn to let go.
“Happiness and freedom begin with a clear understanding of one principle: Some things are within our control, and some things are not.” Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus.
Don’t let things outside of your control torment you. Besides, most of what we worry about never ends up actually happening. I once googled why our brains do this and read that this is a way our brains protect us from something bad and is one of the things that separates us from animals. Anticipating what could go wrong is a defense mechanism, so keep that in mind when you have these negative thoughts, and acknowledge that they are part of being human.
Just breathe…
Today, I dedicate much of my time to helping brain injury survivors, trauma survivors, and others facing mental health setbacks. I’ve been fortunate to share my story and advice by speaking at NYU, the Ohio Hospital of Rehabilitation, and the Brain Injury Association of Michigan’s fall conference.
Take time to step back, focus on yourself, and enjoy the moments that matter most this holiday season. Read additional tips from my blog written last year for managing holiday stress.
Take ownership of your mental health.