On December 8, 2017 I announced I wasn’t blogging anymore because I was launching BLK + GRN, a marketplace of non-toxic personal care products made by Black women, on November 28, 2019 I shared how I was rebuilding post accident with BLK + GRN products, and today, I’m back.
Over the past few months (okay years) I have been feeling off. When I was discharged from the hospital I was focused on promoting the products that BLK + GRN curates. Because I was focused on my own healing, I wasn’t in the place to be champion of health, wellness, or self-care for anyone else but myself. But that’s a contradiction to what BLK + GRN stands for. We aren’t just a marketplace. We aren’t just a place to buy products. We are a complete lifestyle brand that is centered on wholistic wellness. We are centered on removing all toxins from our life, not only the ones in products, but the ones found in food, people, conversations, and our own thoughts. Realizing that, I am in the position to invite ya’ll on the journey to a happy, healthy, and free life with me.
After having a traumatic brain injury, I learned the power of the brain. The power of my thoughts. You are what you think. Understanding that, I want to control what I think. I have developed strategies to help me ensure that my thoughts are centered on what I want. Happiness. I get frustrated when people tell you to stay positive, but don’t tell you how. So here is my attempt to provide tips on how to actually keep your thoughts positive:
Gratitude Journal - I have a hard time journaling, but a gratitude journal works for me. And its not a physical journal, I have 3 blank journals in my nightstand, because my handwriting sucks, lol, and I do not like to write. I have a note on my phone and I try to jot down 3 things I am grateful for at the end of each day. No matter how big or small. Here is my gratitudes from yesterday: 1) I went to bed on time at 10pm, 2) my sons did not cry or when we put them in bed, and 3) I cleared out my personal inbox. Sometimes, I have longer gratitudes’. Here are my gratitudes from October 28: 1) Danced at the harvest fest freely, 2) Remembered to feed the boys and put them in PJs to pick up Jason from the airport, 3) Committed to taking medicine and developed a process so I wouldn’t forget.
Headway - Anytime I am in the car I listen to an audiobook summary on Headway. It has short 10ish minute summaries of books about happiness, health, spirituality, and fitness. I have sat a goal to consistently be improving, and get 1% better everyday and these book summaries help me achieve these goals. I am currently listening to books on parenting, as I am striving to be a conscious parent that raises thoughtful and whole sons.
To Do List - This may seem like a weird strategy to have on a list of maintaining positive thoughts, but I realized that forgetting to do things was spiraling into a lot of negative self talk. In the To Do List app on my iphone I have 24 lists. I have one to do list, where I schedule that dates things are due. Scheduling my list was a HUGE game changer as I was getting overwhelmed by having too many things on my list. So I wasn’t putting things on my list so it wouldn’t be too long. Now, I put everything on my list and schedule them. So although 25 things are on my list, only 2 are due today.
Listen to Affirmations - When I am not listening to a headway I am listening to affirmations in the car. I love the affirmations by Alana Foxx on youtube, and my favorites are morning bliss and the I am affirmations. These affirmations make me feel empowered and centered to create the life I want centered on health, happiness, and freedom each morning. I even listen to them in the car with my sons, and they repeat them with me.
Yoga - I try to go weekly to Spiritual Essence Yoga and when I am feeling extremely frustrated or angered I go to yoga. It has a way of helping me create mental clarity and calmness relieving stress, relaxes the mind, and sharpens my concentration. I was having a intense disagreement with my husband and I went to yoga with my 5 year old son and found the clarity and ease I was looking for. After the class mom’s came up to me and expressed how much they wanted to take there child with them to yoga. This encouraged me to reach out to the studio owner, Dana, and see my son August and I could teach a class. I am so excited that we will be teaching a mother and child 30 minute yoga class at Spiritual Essence Yoga on Wednesday, Apr 24 2024 - May 15 2024 from 5:00 PM - 5:30 PM. I'll pick him from school, get him a snack to make sure he is in a good mood, and then we will teach the class. If you are in the DMV, please join us! Register and select mother and child in the class type and it should pop-up. Make sure you register in advance to grab a spot as there is limited space.
Please share any more strategies you have on keeping your thoughts positive in the comments! Also, let me know how frequently y’all think I should blog? Monthly? Biweekly? Weekly?