Tuesday, March 02, 2021

Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

 



Recently I watched in horror as an elderly woman bruised and and tore her thin skin as she desperately tried to  remove a Band-Aid that didn't "feel" right. The initial cut that the bandage was intended to protect was tiny in comparison to the damage done removing the bandage. I say watched in horror because I saw my potential future self doing the same thing as I empathetically related to her feelings which had overpowered her ability think rationally. 

OCD like tendencies can quietly and covertly get a foot hold in our minds before we are even aware of it. Each time we give in to these sometimes unconscious habits, they become stronger and our control over them becomes weaker,  creating increased anxiety and compulsion to relieve that anxiety. The solution is often to "get comfortable being uncomfortable."  While this phrase is most often applied to models for achieving business success, it has real life long value in combatting unwanted inclinations. If you find yourself more than a little disturbed by having things "just so," it may be to your benefit to intentionally allow yourself to be uncomfortable with those situations. Learning to live with things that make us uncomfortable can lead to greater peace and contentment in this world and others, particularly in our later years.






 

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