How Mental Tools Aid Healing
I have a cast on my right arm and hand because of a fracture near my wrist. Interestingly, this cast isn’t what’s healing the bone itself. My body is doing that on its own, slowly. So why wear a cast? It’s not a magic fix; it’s there to protect me from doing more harm while […]
Programming My Mind
I’ve had a daily routine for years that includes consuming mindful information—things like managing emotions, boosting productivity, or overcoming overwhelm. You’d think I’d have all the answers by now. A lot of the lessons and tools I come across these days are familiar, sometimes just repackaged in different words or with a new example. So, […]
What You Can Control
Dear Me, You are not in charge of everything. It may feel like you are. It may seem like if you work hard enough, you can manipulate everything to work out the way you want. But you can’t. There are things within your control and things that will always be outside of it. Focus on […]
Resisting Activities I Love
Last night, I had my regular call with my brothers. We meet once a week to catch up, and honestly, I didn’t feel like getting on the call. I was considering canceling when, right on time, the phone rang. I picked it up, and we ended up chatting for hours. I had a blast. What […]
Find the Next Right Step
If you are experiencing an emergency, stop reading this and tend to it. If you’re not, then stop telling yourself that you are. When we keep replaying painful moments from our past and imaginary **threats in our future, we are sending signals to our body that we are experiencing trauma. When I replay the pain […]
Don’t Run Away
Sometimes I feel like running away. That feeling is always a signal, a heads-up that something is wrong. Usually, it happens because I’m running on fumes—depleted of basic things like food, sleep, or fun. Other times, I start thinking about everything I need to do for the day, and the sheer size of the list […]
Stop Worrying
My mind used to slip into relentless loops of repetitive thoughts—about my workload, family worries, and all the other “bla bla bla” of life. But with practice, I’ve learned that I actually have the ability to decide where my thoughts go and what I think about throughout the day. It didn’t happen overnight, though. It […]
This is Not a Drill
This morning, I scheduled a writing session for myself. I found that writing in the morning, for me, is best. Mornings offer a fresh day, uninterrupted thoughts, and clear focus. But today’s session was not going well. I was having a hard time focusing on my research. When I found a good thought to write […]
What If I Don’t Enjoy the Journey?
Sometimes, self-help ideas can be irritating. If I’m not careful, they can bother me too. Statements like “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey” can be frustrating. Sometimes, the journey is really hard, and I don’t feel like being on it. I wonder what there is to like about the journey when it feels like […]
Dear ChatGPT, What Do I Do Now?
This morning, I woke up feeling “off.” In a moment of introspection, I decided to ask ChatGPT for some guidance. Here’s the prompt I typed: “I’m 48 years old, I just left a 19-year career to start a new one that is moving really slow. I also moved out of my home city into a […]
