Hey there brainbox

What’s amazing about us humans is our wonderful ability to THINK! The downside of this awesome talent though, is that we think ALL the time! And quite often along the way not only do we overthink but we believe everything that we think is true we then think about our thinking

1. What thoughts do you have? Just as the food on our plate nourishes our bodies, our thoughts have the potential to nourish our minds! And just as we are what we eat, we are what we think!

• on a piece of paper, take some time to write down the things that you’re thinking about, between 5-10 types of thinking

• on a paper plate, divide the plate up into pie-sized areas, enough for each of your categories

• once you’ve drawn out & written on your categories, take a moment to look at how your mind is occupied! Are you focussing on things that are important to you or are you spending loads of time thinking about things that just don’t matter? What can you do to change things up?

2. We’re constantly guessing about the world around us. And we don’t even realise! Our thoughts flit from here to there, we get distracted, we refocus and then we’re off again! Try this simple practice to help!

• take a moment and just breathe. If you’re able to, close your eyes

• take some time to breathe

• then open up to the sounds that all around us

• let the sounds come & go

• you might notice yourself thinking about the sounds, labelling them. If you can, just notice the sounds, let them come & go

• let go of sounds & shift your focus to any thoughts that are happening

• notice thoughts as they arise, as they stay awhile & as they go, perhaps like clouds in the sky?

• notice that some thoughts keep coming up & are, perhaps, distracting? How about label these thoughts whenever you notice them?

• let your thoughts be just as they are!

• come back to breathing and your body just sitting

3. Sometimes our thoughts get the better of us. They can make us feel inadequate, scared, anxious and angry. If this is the case, it’s really important to have a safe place or refuge for ourselves. A refuge is anywhere that protects, inspires or nourishes us. A refuge can be a place, a person, a pet!

Ask yourself, what is and where is my refuge? Perhaps it’s your bedroom? Perhaps it’s a place in your house or garden, or in your friends house? Perhaps it’s walking your dog?

When you find your refuge, slow things down a bit. Take some time to enjoy your refuge. Channel this feeling of safety, of enjoyment. Set aside time to be in your refuge on a regular basis so that you can refuel, reset and relax.

FINAL TAKE

When we develop our resilience, we also increase our ability to remind ourselves that our thoughts are not real! They’re just stories & mental events happening in our head. So whilst we can’t stop our thoughts coming & going, we can pause & make wise choices about how to respond next!

The not-so-small small print

There is none! Simply return to this part of the website daily to get the next part of this program. No payment or subscription required. This is a resource we are sharing with all of you through the website and aiming to help our youngsters, in the various stages of their lives. This program contains information and practices that are aimed for two different age groups and we intend to mostly post the primary level information in the morning and the secondary level in the afternoon. Please leave us a comment and let us know how you are getting on or get in touch if you require additional support. If you want to be notified of new content, courses and free resources subscribe to our mailing list.