Medicine for the Soul

Life isn't the easiest activity to maintain as it contains the inevitable presence of chaos and pain. Sometimes it feels as if it's too much to handle and we're unable to do the things we want or be the person we want to be given that our brains are basically switching to survival mode rendering us unable to develop, grow, and flourish. Some frustrations and sorrows are short-lived whilst some linger and haunt us throughout our days.

In promoting the advocacy of self-care and unity (in a sense that it's an absolute truth that all of us are struggling with something and our minds have a natural sense of looking for the next area of improvement no matter how quote unquote favorable our lives become), here are 5 things that helped me cope amidst the terriying storms that existence has to offer.

1) Journaling

The most important relationship you have is your relationship with yourself. Surprisingly, journaling helped me get more in touch with myself. It made me more aware of what's happening in the depths of my subconscious and the chambers of my soul (where some of our greatest battles in life occur).

To an extent, negative feelings aren't bad - their existence is there by design. It is completely natural to feel hurt, sad, anxious, and angry. It is completely normal to feel pain. It's our natural mechanism for surviving - it's what leads to our will to act so that we can be in a more favorable state.

We instinctively pull our hands away from a flaming candle as we go nearer. Emotions demand to be felt and issues demand to be processed. What you repress and bottle up will eventually find its way back.

Journaling helped me in processing what's happening so that I can pivot, restrategize, and focus on other more creative things. It served like a memory extension for my brain - and the more memory you have, the faster you can accomplish things - like a craftsman with a bigger table having all his needed tools within reach.

I read about the format that I currently follow in Tim Ferris' Tools of Titans since I didn't really know how to begin.

The format includes:

    a) What I'm grateful for today
    b) What will make today great (I journal in the morning)
    c) Daily affirmations

with 3 or more items / entries each section.

The format actually also includes a night journal stating:

a) Good things that happened today
b) What would've made today better

but I'm fine (aka lazy) with the morning journal for now.

Plus, I thought you could actually already incorporate the night's A and B to the following morning's A and B respectively.

I also actually personally added a D (wink wink) in the morning journal, a section called Feelings where I could just actually put how I'm feeling whether it's sad or happy - although mostly I don't really process happiness that much and just cherish it; ergo, my feelings section mostly contain my hinanaings (complaints or negative feedback) towards the world.

Regarding what will make today great section, I make sure that the items are within my control. I don't put there "if it rains" as that's just gonna make me feel powerless.

Lastly, I was skimming the book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind the other day (and btw, fun fact about me, when I actually say the "other day", this can actually pertain to a day that occured several months ago), and it mentioned something about the brain being stupid and how if you keep repeating something to yourself, it's going to recognize it as true.

I'm actually not sure if that's the book I got that idea from but I do actually think that the idea is true and is not just an idea but an actual phenomenon - like maybe the bullshit detecting module of the brain has like a quota or something that it stops working properly after a certain amount of information input per second - so everyday in my daily affirmations section, I tell myself that I am calm.

Lo and behold, I've been feeling a lot more calmer these past several weeks. (So sinong niloloko ko? Sarili ko? - and maybe that's okay). Side note - I thought it was Law and Behold lmao.

2) Deep breathing

This honestly sounded absurd to me before but when you're in a tough spot you do what you can to ensure that you've exhausted all your options - even if it means doing a rain dance. I actually have already read or heard about this a lot in the past but I only really tried it out when a psychologist recommended it.

4-7-8 breathing exercise is what worked for me.
4 seconds inhale, 7 seconds hold, and 8 seconds exhale.
3-7 sets / times.

I had a rather difficult time doing it initially, but eventually my body adapted - as it always does - and as it is designed to do. I feel better everytime I do it.

Focusing on the counting made me feel like at one certain moment, that's all I'm thinking about and chaos in the world may always be present but at the certain present, it wasn't really existent inside the scope of my consciousness/attention where my reality stands on. // Null reference error

It may also help in having a different view of a certain problematic situation since our brain tends to gets stuck sometimes. // Infinite Loop

Additionally, I was in Celadon City the other day shopping and I bumped into Nurse Joy and she told me that deep breathing allows more activity for the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the alveoli in the lungs - which helps in pain relief and I'm assuming all other fucking processes in the body.

3) Doing what you want

A philosophy professor of mine back in college once stated that "a brain in pain cannot learn". In order to alleviate this, he says "do something you like". Humans aren't meant to be in a constant state of anxiety.

There is however honestly a point of sadness where I wasn't interested in doing the normal things I'm interested in. It however helped me when I looked for and found something new to work on / do so that my brain's attention gets diverted.

I found a sense of creativity in making illustrations and editing photos. To be quite honest, that literally meant tracing photos and adding filters respectively but hey man it makes me happy (blissfully ignorant temporarilty) and I'm not hurting anyone so shush!

Side note - it's funny how you can proclaim yourself to be anything on the internet. You can call yourself a content writer, graphic artist, and software engineer, and nobody gives a fuck. I made a Tiktok the other day and called myself a video editor.

Seriously however, I think that for the most part, you can be anything you want. I uttered for the most part because realistically speaking it takes resources to pursue some of our dreams. You just have to ask yourself who you wanna be, list tasks that support that identity, follow through, and enjoy.

It's not a question of where you are but of where you wanna go.
It's not who you are but who you wanna be.

You are capable of being better.
You are capable of being better.
You are capable of being better.

This is me trying to circumvent the bullshit detector part of you brain mentioned in number 1.

4) Allowing yourself to feel things

Similar to what I mentioned in number 1, emotions demand to be felt and the length of time suffering is really an unknown to be quite honest but eventually we get over things.

In the book The Subtle Art of not giving a Fuck, Mark (wow, close kami) mentioned that sometimes the healthiest thing you can do is admit that life sucks. We all have our down days. Servers have their down time. Bears hibernate during the winter, I think - and even Ed Sheeran's dad cries.

It is however important to treat yourself with care and kindness during offseason. Things like drinking a lot of water, eating good food, putting on vicks, preparing a hot cup of tea, and wearing your favorite sweater can go a long way in making you feel better.

5) Talking to people

No man is an island. Sometimes when we're lost and devastated, we have to ask for guidance, help, support, and warmth. Talking about your issues with other beings helps in getting other points of view that may ultimate lead your peace of mind. Also, it helps to feel heard and to know that your feelings are valid.

This doesn't mean you can talk to any person however. Some scenarios require the right person. If you have a problem with fire, you talk to the firemen and not the policemen.

I just wanna point out that if you're feeling unwell about life, it's probably valid. I just do however also wanna give a friendly reminder that there are still a lot of good things in this world and a lot of potential for improvement.

I hope you feel better and take care of yourself today - and find something that brings you joy as tomorrow is never promised.