I was standing in a beautiful stone built shower this evening with clean, hot water running over me. As I washed my hair with what some may call bougie shampoo, a question popped into my head. Why is it so hard to believe that I may have just changed? What is the real problem with dealing with change, anyway? Why does it feel so weird and why can’t we accept that it is a normal, part of self-growth…part of life.

I Forgot I Could Change

We backpacked through the backcountry for 3 days this week. We experienced outdoor showers, more than one secret oasis, howling coyotes on the hunt and a random horse pass our tent. We trudged through more than 30 miles of hiking, including up the tallest mountain in the state as well as the wilderness, the desert, the tundra, the forest, and a canyon.
We viewed sunrise after sunset at some of the most stunning places we’ve ever been together, including great meals and many memorable moments together. We enjoyed talking, walking and even silence during hiking struggles.
So, why is it that today, when the first thing went wrong, that my overthinking brain hit the roof? I wasn’t seeing clearly earlier, but since that refreshing hot shower, I’m a little more understanding.
You see, I forgot that I could change. I forgot that it’s okay to adjust what you do as you get older, or how you approach new situations, or even situations that you previously were in. It’s okay to feel the hurt when something doesn’t go your way, we are allowed to have feelings when things just plain suck sometimes.
But at the end of the day, we have to realize one thing. That thing is that dealing with change is always going to be present in our world, change is always going to happen whether we’re ready for it or not.
The thing that hits hardest however, is how you handle the change that comes your way.
What change have you encountered lately?

Related: What Are Your Pillars? Mental, Physical, Emotional Health Foundations

Dealing With Changing Situations and How I React to Them

It’s becoming more and more clear to me when I need to adjust my mindset. I often even realize it now in the middle of an actual conversation, where I’ll start to work on self-talk inside my own thoughts. It doesn’t always help right away, but reflecting on it throughout the day is where I find the most progress.
Sometimes I’ll talk to my partner about it. Sometimes I’ll put away my screens and just sit to reflect while working on breath work. Other times, I’ll talk to you.
As much as I’m hopeful these posts will enlighten another in the world to their potential and understanding of self, it helps me just as much to be able to use this canvas to paint new perspectives on how to adjust my way of thinking or being to better fit into tomorrow.
Focusing on the good in our lives is often so much more difficult than focusing on the negative. If I had to keep a tally for this trip, the positive moments would far outweigh the negative ones. Yet, when someone asks me how it went, you know the first thing that will come to mind might just be this one negative one. Why is that? Why does our brain trick us into thinking that those moments are more important to highlight?
Human beings like drama, and drama is memorable. My goal this year is to focus on becoming more aware of how I react in changing situations, such as when I was conflicted earlier about whether or not to get another campsite, or a tiny home. After MUCH back and forth contemplation, I decided I was in love with neither and that I should look some more. (All the while missing out on beautiful landscapes passing me by).
Low and behold, I found another airbnb that was perfect. We decided to upgrade for the evening and clicked “book.”

Changing Rooms and Changing Attitude

When we got to the place, there was clearly issues allover. There was soot everywhere from an apparent fire from the person before us, broken things nearly all the places we checked, and just bad vibes throughout the room.
The maintenance was kind enough to relocate us to an even more beautiful room, although I was initially upset since that was my perfect aesthetic carefully chosen place. I complained to my husband about the new one, how it was so different and how the patio view wasn’t as nice. I complained about the slowly draining jet tub that I’d longed for after those miles of hikes.
I spent so much time complaining that I forgot to look outside and remind myself how magnificent of a place I was already blessed to be in…
In that shower, I realized that I was complaining about things that I was taking for granted. Things that I’d grown accustomed to in our travels and things that I was craving so much after missing them for days, that when the slightest thing went wrong, I’d gotten angry, annoyed, even ignorant to my surroundings.
Dealing with change is so difficult sometimes. Especially as an adult. We get so used to doing things one way for so long, or being used to how we did things as kids and teenagers, that when that adult life hits us, we expect to continue on with those feelings. I realized that since I’d loved camping so much as a child, that of course I must love it just as much now. And I do.
But my back, my joints, my body, the cold, the up at night to walk 100 feet to a half-working bathroom (if there even was one), the constant reminder I was nearly alone in the wilderness, those were things I was not used to. Those things I needed a break from as fun as they were. And when I had such high expectations for those things to be present today and they weren’t, I got cranky, and took change for granted.

Related:  Shining Light on Stress and Mental Health Barriers: Lessons Learned From the Solar Eclipse

Everyone Deals Differently

Dealing with change is hard. It’s not easy to realize that you may be just a little (or a lot) different than you once were. It’s not easy to realize that growing pains are real, both physically and mentally. But recognizing the signs of these things may start to make those changes that come with growth just a little easier to navigate.
What have you had to deal with lately that caused you to have a change in attitude? A change in mindset? A change in motive?
Has something changed in your workplace? Or in your children’s schooling? Has a spouse changed careers or have you changed one of your own? Did you decide to start up a new hobby or perhaps a new business?
We all deal with change differently, and finding the best way to deal with your own will likely take a great deal of time. But one step, one day, one month or year at a time, we can make this adjustment to allow change into our lives more easily. To stop the overthinking and over considering our options. To just go with the flow and enjoy life for what it is. To embrace positivity instead of letting the negative thoughts consume us at every turn.
When you are ready to accept change, you will know. Just make a promise to yourself that you’ll be there for you. That you’ll find a way through the uncomfortableness, that you will allow change to help you grow into a more beautiful and brighter being.
It’s worth it.

Thank You For Reading “Dealing With Change: An Uncomfortable Shift In Mindset And A Lesson Learned”

Thank you for reading today’s post about the difficulties of dealing with change.  What has your path looked like? What will it look like tomorrow?  Let me know what resonates with you. If you have a suggestion for our next post, let us know. Don’t forget to check out our sister site Rooted in Reselling.