How often do you feel tired or exhausted? Is it just a couple of days before your period, or is it a daily occurrence? Well if you often feel sluggish and have difficulty coping with the increasing demands life puts upon you, you’re not alone. Chronic fatigue has become one of the epidemics of our modern society.
The sad news is that many people are simply getting used to this sluggish state, and have begun to believe it’s normal.
Not true. Believe it or not, feeling vital and energetic is your birthright.
For years I suffered from chronic fatigue. Low energy affected my moods, my productivity, and my enjoyment of life.
Sick and tired of feeling sick and tired and depressed so much of the time, one day I shouted out, “No more! I want to feel more alive!”
Isn’t this what you want too, to feel alive and to live a full and vibrant life?
I began to pay attention to my own energy patterns and tried out various ways to manage my energy better. Eventually I figured out what works for me.
Now I feel vital and energetic most of the time. And even at times when I feel tired and exhausted, I can rely on my tools to recover my energy more quickly and efficiently.
The following are a few tips I’ve learned along the way. Hopefully they’ll help you spark a few ideas of your own.
Visualized your desired outcome.
I’m sure there are moments in your life when you feel vital and energetic. We all have such moments, no matter how fleeting. Recall one such moment.
How did you feel, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually? Did you feel vibrant, happy, focus and connected at the same time? Spend a few minutes every day to try and immerse yourself in that state.
Believe it or not, the more you are able to visualize this desired state, the more you are likely to feel it in reality.
Understand your energy patterns.
The first step to any positive change always begins with awareness. Take notice of your energy level over the course of a day, a week and a month.
Renew your energy regularly.
Whether you want to admit it or not, you have an energy bank account. And you can’t keep spending your energy without making sufficient deposits to replenish it. Otherwise you’ll deplete your energy bank account, and you know the consequence.
I used to believe I was an iron woman who could will myself to keep going. But when chronic fatigue hit me I learned a big lesson.
Now I make a point to recover my energy on an hourly, daily, weekly and monthly basis through nutrition, exercise, sleep and rest, and enjoyment and fun. I’ll explain more in the next point.
Create your own energy rituals.
As I wrote in my previous post Small Rituals Big Difference, we’re creatures of habit. When we make something a habit, it becomes automatic and frees up precious capacity and energy to help us focus on things that require our conscious efforts.
So begin to incorporate into your daily routines one or two small rituals to replenish and renew your energy. As they become effortless habits, you can move on to add a few more rituals.
Be consistent over the first 1-2 months.
Researchers have shown that it takes, on average, 66 days to acquire a new habit. For more details, refer to my post How Long Does it Take to Form A New Habit. The first 1-2 months are the crucial acquisition period for your new energy rituals.
During this time, you’ll need some assistance from your will and discipline – and you know how hard it is to ask for their help. So don’t be overly ambitious. Acquire one small ritual at a time.
It’ll surely strengthen your mental, emotional and physical muscles to help you acquire even more over time. Once you get past the initial acquisition period, you’ll find your energy ritual as naturally as brushing your teeth. Okay, almost as naturally…
Monitor your progress.
One last point: It’s extremely helpful to take a few minutes a day to review your goals and monitor your progress. One way to do this is to keep a mood journal.
Hope you find these tips helpful. Please share your experience with us. We’d love to hear from you.
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