I want to share with you a little thought swap/brain trick I’ve been using lately.  It’s nothing new and you’ve probably heard of it before but it’s really been helping me a lot lately.

Whatever situation I’m in, I’ve noticed that I can always find something to support my mood, good or bad.  If I want doom and gloom I can always find doom and gloom.  I can find happiness to support my happiness, I can find loneliness to support my loneliness, joy for my joy, pain for my pain, and on and on.  The internet and social media make it easy to find common ground for what you’re feeling.

That can be good when you’re feeling all the positive emotions but a downward spiral whenever the negative starts to pop up.  While I’m all for feeling the feels you have at that moment, you can’t wallow in the negative forever or you might never find your way out.  It can feel crushing and hopeless.  Not good things to feel.  So lately when I find myself searching for affirmation of my negative feelings, I stop and take a breath and try my hardest to start searching for the good things. 

Example, my cat and her health issues.  As soon as we got the diagnosis of CKD, both Adam and I started living in the land of doom and gloom.  It was easy to find articles about how difficult it could be to care for a cat with CKD, simple to dwell on the fact that this disease could very well be her downfall, a piece of cake to feel like there is nothing we could do.  And yet, the ENTIRE time there were so many positive things going on that I only started to see in retrospect.  Things like:

• I had the time and ability to be able to take her to multiple vet and ER visits
• We had the capability to pay for her care (even though it was WAY more than we wanted to pay)
• Everywhere we went, we had the best and kindest care.
• My parents were able to come and drive me to the ER the first time so I wouldn’t have to take a sick cat on a bus. Plus, they were there to give me support since Adam had to stay at work.
• Her vet at the ER constantly said he was hopeful and optimistic about her prognosis and always answered our questions honestly and in ways we could understand.
• All the vet techs were wonderful and when we visited made sure we had more than enough time to spend with Dot.
• Even though she felt miserable, Dot was still able to give us her little kitty nudges and tell us she loved us in her own way.
• When I picked up Dot to bring her home, my mom YET AGAIN was able to come and drive me there and back so I wouldn’t have to take a cat on a bus.
• Dot started eating again right before she came home which was a HUGE concern.
• She might still be a little slow and need extra rest, she is slowly getting better and stronger and overall glad to be home.

See all those good things?  They happened even though there was the looming diagnosis of chronic kidney disease.  I just didn’t look for them.  I looked for the stuff that told me this situation was hopeless and I should just give up and expect the inevitable.  

This happens to me all the time in many situations.  I tend to focus on the negative even while all the POSITIVE stuff is happening too.  So I’m making a conscious effort to swap my bad for the good because when I really look, there is good.  Remember, you can always find what you’re looking for when it comes to your moods and situations. If you’re looking for gloom you WILL find it but the same goes for joy.  Look for it and you WILL find joy.

And happiness.

Excitement.

Love.

Contentment.

Satisfaction.

Peace.

You have the power to find it all.  So find it.