Intentional Health

 

 
 







 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Health.

If I sit and dwell on what the next 24+ hours could bring, I can feel the anxiety welling up in me. I speak this for whatever the outcome may be. Whether it’s the one I voted for or not. The whole thing just starts to roil inside me. I start to go down the what-ifs and envision the worst case scenarios. My breath shortens, my shoulders tighten, and my stomach flip-flops.

 And then I know I need to stop, take a few deep breaths, and remind myself of Truth.

 I’ve done my part. The right to vote that was hard fought, I went and cast mine. And now I wait on Him.

 In every season, the ones that feel certain and the ones that do not. We do what we can and we wait on His goodness.

 And remind ourselves that He is in control. No matter what the outcome is, it will not be a surprise to Him.

 If you, too, struggle with anxiety like I’m talking about, you know it's not as easy as just “calming down” or “forgetting about it.” Intentional steps have to be taken to combat anxiety, and it's ever grasping tendrils of panic, tension, fatigue, and depression.




 

And, so I made a list of my intentional steps for the next 48 hours (and really, probably longer!):

1. Shutting off the noise. No news. No social media. No mindless scroll.

2. Getting outside. Even if it’s 40 degrees. Breathing fresh air and reminding myself of the good things that still are.

3. Preaching Truth to myself. Through scripture and prayer. Always going back to the Promises that have never changed.

4. Hugging someone. Studies have shown that an 8 second hug does wonders for the mood (hello, increased happy hormones!). In a year of little physical contact, hugging someone you love takes on a whole new level, doesn't it?

If you are also feeling the rising anxiety of this political season, I encourage you to take some intentional steps, even the 4 stated above, towards a healthier mindset. It's amazing what shutting off noise and filling our hearts with Truth will do for the mind!

May we walk through this day, and the days to come, with our mind, heart, and soul focused on the One who holds it all in His control. Working all for good.

Let's intentionally walk that Way.



With intention, Nichole

 

Nichole



 




ABOUT ME

 

Jesus Follower | Wife | Mom | Radical Giver | Seeking to live an Intentional Life and inspire others to come along with me in the Journey










 

Know someone who would enjoy being on this Intentional Life journey with us? Please share!

f-facebook
f-instagram






 

Comments

  1. UnknownNovember 5, 2020 at 3:32 PM

    Thanks for posting this. I fight these same feelings welling up inside me, and your steps to combat the lies and hysteria from Satan are great advice. Thank you!
    Heidi Edelman

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nichole SuvarJanuary 21, 2021 at 7:58 AM

      I'm so glad it was helpful, Heidi! I've got to keep reminding myself of these intentional steps, too. One day at a time...

      Delete

Post a Comment

Tell me how you live intentional. I'd love to know!

Popular posts from this blog

Week 13: Tackle that Stack

Image
At one point in time I had stacks and stacks of magazines. Real Simple, Country Living, Dwell, This Old House, Food Network Magazine These were my favorites.  And I kept every single issue. And, once again, the Flood of 2013 took care of that stash. And made me realize that I really didn't need to keep them around anyways. But I really like flipping through magazines, having a stack waiting on me for weekends, road trips, and sitting outside in the sun.  And some of the articles are really good and I want to keep them. And some of the pictures inspire me and I want them around. But I don't like the clutter they create so there are a few things I've done to tweak it so that I can still get my magazine flip-though fix and still have those articles and pictures around that I like. 1.  The library. Our local one has quite a bit to choose from so I can get my fix from there. PLUS, they haven't recently made it possible to check out magazines through my K...
Read more

Teacher Appreciation

Image
This is a copy, with a few edits, from my post from last year. I wish I could say that I have always appreciated the hard work that teachers do. But, unfortunately, that is not the case. During my years as a student, they were certainly taken for granted, no thought for all the prep work and time spent outside of the classroom. The classrooms just come looking that way, right?  With all those posters and creative bulletin boards? I didn't think about all the homework assignments, tests, project, quizzes that had to be prepared before ever giving them to the students.  They just took them right out a book, didn't they? I mean, I know they had to spend time grading tests and homework, but they could get that done in about 30 minutes after school was done for the day. Done with work at 4PM?  Getting 3 months off in the summer and two weeks at Christmas, plus all those other random holidays? Psh. But that was then.  Sorry, teachers, I was a sel...
Read more

Want to play frisbee golf?

Image
  Relationships. "Mom, can we go frisbee golfing?"   In my head, my first thought is, "No, I'd rather not go out in 95 degree heat and toss a frisbee at targets for 2 hours." I'd gladly read a book in the shade, go for a hike, take a nap, or go for a cup of coffee. But frisbee golf?   But, when your 14 year old asks to do something WITH you, it's best to jump on that train because you don't know when it will pass by again.   So, we went frisbee golfing. And though it did end up being fun, the most joy was seeing my son doing something he enjoys and being a part of it. It's life-giving to the relationship.   I see this play out big time in other areas as well when it comes to our kids. I pretty much take life seriously and don't slow down to have fun a whole lot. But setting aside my own interests, and taking up one of my child's instead, always proves fruitful.   When I'm tempted to groan and maybe even sigh at the one h...
Read more