Stop. Question that thought.
My client Shania is a successful project manager and she loves her job. One morning she woke up with a high fever and nausea. “I can’t cancel my appointments. I don’t want to inconvenience my clients. I’m not that sick. I’m exaggerating how badly I feel.”
Her thoughts continued. “You’re going to lose clients if you take sick time. They need you. They depend on you. You’re being selfish. You’re already behind. Taking a day off will only put you further behind and increase your stress and anxiety.”
She thought others would see her as needy. “Being sick is a sign of weakness, it’s inconvenient, and makes me feel really vulnerable.”
She didn’t think she deserved the time to take care of her needs.
Not every thought you think is true and
not every thought you think is you.
DO THIS.
Notice when you feel anxious, irritable, or afraid. Write down what you were thinking about before those feelings started. You will notice the pattern of thoughts that trigger them. This awareness allows you to make different choices.
Shania wrote the following thoughts about taking time to recover from her illness.
- “I have to perform at 200 percent in order to keep my clients happy.”
- “I don’t want to appear needy or like I don’t have it together.”
- “I’m being selfish.”
She decided to change the way she viewed sickness. Instead of blaming herself, she said, “Everyone gets sick. When I do, I choose to stay home and care for myself.”
Think of a recent situation when you wanted to do something for yourself but stopped. Identify your thoughts or beliefs that prevented you from taking action. Change your thought.
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Not every thought you think is true and not every thought you think is you.
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