It was an ordinary morning, or at least I thought it was when I woke up. I headed into the living room to get my day started with some yoga, and as I rolled out my yoga mat I noticed something odd on the rug. It was a greenish blue stain. Upon closer inspection I realized it was mold. Looking around my living room I noticed that it wasn’t just on the rug. It was on the wicker chest by the window too. How did this happen? I wondered, and I immediately started freaking out.
I rolled up the rug and threw it out in the backyard. I took the chest outside and scrubbed down with disinfectant. The whole while my head was racing. Where did this come from? Will it kill us? Why is this happening?
It took my husband pointing out what I was doing for me to realize. I was falling back into an old habit that I’d thought I’d gotten rid of ages ago. I was panicking and freaking out over something that is fixable. I was coming up with a bunch of worst case scenarios without even knowing all of the facts.
I used to do this all the time. There was a time in my life when I’d have about one freakout like this a week over minor things.
Yes, mold all over my living room is a bad scene, but panicking is not going to do anything to help the situation. Instead of panicking, I needed to think clearly so that I could come up with a solution.
Have you ever found yourself falling back into old negative habits? Just when you thought you’d gotten over a particular behavior in a weak moment it rears its ugly head again.
None of us are perfect. The habits of the past have worn paths in your brain. Those paths are easy for your consciousness to find when times get tough.
Here are some tips that will help you when you find yourself slipping back into old habits.
Be mindful …
Notice what your are doing. Be mindful of your actions during the day. Many of us go through life on autopilot that’s when old habits can pop up. If you notice that you are slipping back into negative habits take some time to stop and regroup.
It took my husband to point out my slip up because I was so deep into it. If people around you point out that you are slipping back into old habits, don’t get angry at them. Stop and look closely at your behavior.
Analyze why this is happening …
Why have you fallen off course? You need to figure out what triggered your relapse so that when a similar incident happens in the future you can be prepared.
I know that I tend to fall back into old habits when something goes unexpectedly wrong. In the future I need to pay close attention to my thoughts and behaviors when something goes wrong again.
Don’t give up on yourself …
Oftentimes when people make a mistake they tend to throw up their hands and give up. Have you ever messed up on a diet and used it as an excuse to go hog wild and eat everything you weren’t supposed to that day? I have. One slip up doesn’t mean all bets are off. It just means that you made a mistake.
Reconnect with your new world view …
I often say that in order to change a behavior you need to change the way you perceive yourself and the world around you. We all look at this world through our own individual filters. If you change your filter you’ll see the world differently and as a result you’ll behave differently.
It’s my hope that when you decided to make a change in your behavior you started by shifting the way you perceived things. If you didn’t you can take time to do this now.
I wrote an article about doing this recently on Tiny Buddha. If you haven’t read it already I encourage you to go there and read the article.
When you find yourself falling back into your old world view and succumbing to old habits find a quiet place and take some time to remember the new you. Take a few deep breaths, close your eyes, and visualize yourself acting in a way that supports your new world view. Breathe into that way of being. Open your eyes and step back into the world with resolve to be the best version of yourself.
We all slip up from time to time. Be kind to yourself and start each day with the resolution to do better than you did the day before. That’s the best any of us can do.