So we’ve been a little quiet this last week or 2 due to an accident, note to self don’t get in the middle of a horse fight! But actually that has given me some valuable food for thought on this next topic.
You might have seen our last Instagram post about a CBT technique that many of us use subconsciously. One simple little phrase “it is what it is” can actually be a valuable tool in our mental fitness toolkit. This little phrase is something I took for granted until I actually thought about the underlying meaning of it.
As part of our Sigmoid Mental Fitness Toolkit, we cover a session on getting control of your thoughts. When there are 6000 thoughts whizzing through your mind each day, how do you decide which ones to dwell on and which ones to let go of? We help you to understand which thoughts serve you well, moving you to better moods and which thoughts are not so valuable to you. We also give some simple tools and techniques to help with thought management, like pinging an elastic band on your wrist to help you snap out of those negative thoughts. It’s all about becoming more aware of which thoughts you decide to take on a journey.
Saying “it is what it is” works in a similar way. This little phrase is a deliberate action to decide not to take those negative thoughts on a journey. It reminds us not to dwell on the negatives and become bogged down with circumstances that are simply out with our control. When we are unable to change those circumstances we must choose to park it, to put a pin in it and move forward, and saying that little phrase to yourself is a way of acknowledging the circumstances, but being mentally fit enough to determine that dwelling on that particular thought or circumstance is of no value to us and we must accept, acknowledge and move forward.
I’ve spent a lot of my time in the last 2 weeks sitting with my feet up (doctors orders of course!), I find myself thinking of ways to change my situation or becoming bogged down in my newfound circumstances, fed up with not being able to do the things that I took for granted a few weeks ago. It’s easy to take these thoughts on a journey but the fact is that they don’t serve me well, they bring me down to lower mood states instead of lifting me up. This is when it’s important to simply say “it is what it is” and right now, I can't change it.
So try it, the next time you find yourself focusing on something out with your control, remind yourself that “it is what it is”. Remind yourself that you are in control of your thoughts and not vice versa, remind yourself that you have the power to choose which thoughts you take on a journey and which thoughts you allow to pass by.
If you want to know more about interrupting negative thoughts, you can purchase one of our Mental Fitness Toolkits or book an introductory chat with us.
Stay safe and have a great week!
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