Day 257: Ahh, not Ugh

I mentioned previously that I'm navigating burnout. 

The more experience I get with it, the more upsetting it becomes.
The more awareness I gain of it, the more I see it touches - and to what (ever-growing) extent.

I've never had this experience before and it's kind of scary.
I know that there are people that live for years with burnout - or at least until they develop some sort of health issue and have to address it.
I don't want that!
It sounds miserable and I really don't want a miserable-feeling life!

I had a coaching session with Audrey on Tuesday and I realized that I still hadn't looked into a recommendation she had given me two weeks ago (that I was very interested in).

. . .Which is kind of like that doctor's appointment I still haven't booked.

Or that plant I still need to repot.
[Ok, let's be real, this task was going to be pushed off for as long as possible, burnout or not!]

I told her, for my session, I wanted to explore and come up with some mental checks I could go through when deciding on what and with whom I spend my time and very limited energy. 

This would help me to  more consciously choose the most healthful and restorative things to build up my energy (aka - motivation, interests, overall activity) rather than deplete it.

The saying, 'If it's not a hell yes, it's a no,' came to mind.

While I don't fully agree with this sentiment, it does certainly help with short-term decision making.

If only it resonated with me . . . 

So we came up with our own scaling tool for me.

If it's not an 'Ahh', it's an 'Ugh'.

I had told Audrey about several occurrences that left me feeling 'ugh' last week and not looking forward to activities associated with them. From this, the scale was born!

We built a check list - the things I would check-in with, both physically and mentally, when discerning between an 'Ugh' (pass) and an 'Ahh' (let's do it!).

My list consisted of:

- Check-in with the feeling in my gut

- Check in with chest sensations

- Ask myself, 'Is this what I want to do?'

- Ask myself, 'is this choice about others or me?'

[Jury's still out on if this is the best criteria combination, but I'm testing it out!]

The main thing is tuning into and growing your awareness on the things that make you feel good.
And then letting this be your guide.

The body is self-healing, but it needs the right (energetic) nutrients to get it started.