Weekly Inspiration: Emotional First Aid

Earlier this week, I wrote here about happiness and optimism. Lots of people told me they could relate to that post, that they too found joy in small things. One online friend said she herself was in a similar state of mind right now, having also come through a recent bad period and finally feeling a bit better - she described it as " a ridiculous enthusiasm for everything" (a perfect description) and told me how excited she was over the amazing omelet she made herself for lunch!

But, I know that there are at least as many of you out there who could not relate to that post, who are not happy, who feel overwhelmingly beaten by this terrible disease, and who feel that you have nothing to look forward to. As another friend put it, sometimes "one is simply dealing with this minute and the next, and hoping for some point of light and solace in that dark place, as the most we can manage." And I get that that, too, because I have gone through periods like that, early in my illness even experiencing true depression for the first time in my life.

Today I found this TED Talk that I hope will be helpful to you. It's by a psychologist named Guy Winch who talks about "Why We All Need to Practice Emotional First Aid." He speaks to the need for emotional hygiene, just like physical hygiene, though something that most of us overlook.

In his talk, he discusses loneliness, helplessness, failure, rejection, and focusing/obsessing over negative things - all crippling emotions that can actually affect our physical health if they go untreated or are not addressed. He explains how our emotions can fool us and the importance of  prioritizing our psychological health, that we should treat emotional pain just like we do physical pain. You can listen for yourself, in this short talk:



I really enjoyed this talk and found it fascinating. Even with my current positive state of mind, I learned some tips here that will be useful to me - his section on ruminating over negative things really hit home for me!

I hope you find this talk as inspirational as I did. Enjoy this weekend...and remember to take care of your mind as well as your body!