“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”
How do the words above resonate with you?
Pause here for a moment and free yourself from distractions:
Take a deep breath in... exhale slowly... deep breath in... exhale slowly... deep breath in... exhale slowly... calm your mind and be present...
The Serenity Prayer is an excellent reminder of the power of acceptance.
Acceptance is a person's assent to the reality of a situation, recognizing a process or condition (often a negative or uncomfortable situation) that is a fait accompli without attempting to change it or protest it.
(Wikipedia.org)
In psychology, acceptance refers to:
the process of embracing thoughts, emotions and other internal experiences without judgement and without trying to change them.
The key to keeping out mental health on track is reminding ourselves that we cannot change the past or control others; we can only control ourselves.
What can I do in this moment that will benefit the greater good?
If you are looking for way to become more accepting, take a look at these strategies:
How to Be More Accepting
(by Tchiki Davis, Ph.D. psychologytoday.com)
1. Cultivate acceptance by noticing your resistance: The first step towards changing any habit is simply becoming aware of its existence.
How do you tend to resist your experience?
2. Cultivate acceptance by questioning your patterns: Try to dig a little deeper to consider why these patterns might exist.
When you were sad or angry as a child, how did the adults in your life react?
How might these experiences influence the way you process emotions today? Pause and think about that for a moment...
3. Cultivate acceptance by being mindful: Mindfulness involves both awareness and acceptance of our experience. A traditional method of practicing mindfulness is through meditation, which involves dedicating a period of time to simply observing experience non-judgmentally.
How can you add 5 minutes of mindful meditation into your schedule today?
4. Cultivate acceptance by thinking of your inner child: Think about yourself as a child. A reminder of your most innocent and vulnerable self, which may make it easier to be gentle and understanding when your experience is difficult.
What would you tell your 5 year old self in this situation?
5. Cultivate acceptance through practice: Acceptance is just like any other skill: it takes practice. After a while, these intentional repeated mental choices become habitual and natural and do not require as much effort.
When you find yourself challenged or struggling ask yourself, how can I use this as an opportunity to practice acceptance?
Don’t miss your opportunity. Be intentional, encourage others to do the same and watch what happens.
You got this!
Coach Tavia
#acceptance, #beempowered, #selfawareness, #selfdevelopment, #selfimprovement, #believe, #purpose, #persistance, #bepositive, #pray
Reference:
How to Practice Acceptance:
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