Tag: mindfulness

How to Cope with Anxiety While Waiting for Change

by Mothersense, posted in This Life

The Agony of Waiting (and How to Survive It Without Losing Your Mind)

We’ve all been there.
The email is sent. The interview went great. The scale is so close to that magic number.
You’re halfway through a project, a life change, or a dream, and now you’re…
just…
waiting.

Waiting for the phone to ring.
Waiting for the green light.
Waiting for the thing you know is coming (probably) but still feels like it’s stuck in a cosmic traffic jam.

It’s maddening.

Why Waiting Feels So Hard

Waiting is a limbo space. You’re not where you were, but you’re not yet where you want to be. Our brains hate that. They crave certainty, closure, and momentum. Without it, anxiety loves to step in and narrate a running “what if” list like an over-caffeinated sports commentator.

We’ve been taught that if we’re not actively doing something, we’re failing, lazy, or wasting time. So we start filling the space with noise—tasks, projects, errands—sometimes not because they matter, but because the silence of waiting feels unbearable.

Here’s the Truth: You Don’t Have to Fill Every Second

Waiting doesn’t have to be passive, but it also doesn’t have to be crammed full of “productivity” for the sake of appearances.
There’s a radical thing we can do instead:
Be still.

Being still doesn’t mean being frozen. It means giving yourself permission to exist without constantly proving your worth through output. Stillness can be taking a slow walk without a podcast in your ears. Sitting outside with a cup of coffee, just watching the way sunlight hits the leaves. Allowing yourself to breathe without thinking, “I should be doing something right now.”

What You Can Do While You Wait (Without Driving Yourself Crazy)

  1. Hold space for yourself
     Give your emotions somewhere to go. Journal them. Talk them out. Cry if you need to. Sometimes the waiting is the work, because you’re learning to sit with uncertainty.
  2. Set “check-in” times
     Instead of obsessively refreshing your inbox, decide you’ll check it at certain times of the day. Boundaries keep you from spiraling into constant vigilance.
  3. Practice micro-pleasures
     Do tiny, nourishing things that don’t have to lead anywhere—a short walk, a chapter of a book, baking something, or even rearranging your desk for your own comfort.
  4. Reconnect with the non-outcome parts of life
     The people, hobbies, and routines that aren’t tied to the thing you’re waiting for can ground you in the present.
  5. Let it be awkward
     Not every season has to be full of dazzling growth. Some seasons are about holding the ground while the seed sprouts underground, invisible to you.

The Gentle Reminder

You don’t have to earn the right to rest.
You don’t have to distract yourself into exhaustion.
And you don’t have to let waiting steal all the joy out of right now.

The thing you’re waiting for will come—or something else will arrive in its place—and you’ll move forward when it’s time. In the meantime, give yourself grace. Stay curious. Be still when you can. Move when it feels good.

Because life isn’t just about the big moments when the call finally comes, the scale tips, or the email lands. It’s also about the quiet minutes in between—the waiting room of life—where we learn who we are without the outcome.

Heart-Healthy Living: Your Guide to Safe Movement

by Mothersense, posted in This Life

My journey so far has been pretty successful. I am still waiting for a couple of consults. I am adjusting as are the folks at home with me. I think it’s easy to forget that I have this condition sometimes. I look like I always have. I still enjoy the same things. I don’t look sick, and honestly, that’s the idea!!! I want to be able to continue to live a long life. I want to see all of my children grow up. I hope they follow their dreams. So here is my contribution to encouraging you to take care of yourself, even when it is challenging.

🫀 Heart-Healthy Movement, Sleep, and Peace of Mind

1. Moving with Cardiomyopathy: Start Small, Go Slow

If you’re living with cardiomyopathy—regardless of whether it’s dilated, hypertrophic, or arrhythmogenic—it’s important to move safely under medical supervision. A personalized plan starts with a thorough evaluation, stress testing, and medication optimization. Moderate exercise—such as walking, gentle strength or resistance work, yoga—is generally recommended. High-intensity or competitive sports may be allowed only after careful risk assessment and shared decision-making with your cardiologist (cardiology.theclinics.com, American College of Cardiology).

Patients without high-risk markers in dilated cardiomyopathy (ejection fraction LVEF ≥ 40–45%, no arrhythmias) can safely engage in low to moderate intensity recreational exercise. That includes walking, Pilates, light resistance training under guidance (IMR Press). Avoid heavy lifting, sprinting, or competitive sports until cleared by your doctor (cardiomyopathy.org, American College of Cardiology).

⚡ Pro Tip: If you feel dizziness, chest tightness, unusual shortness of breath, or palpitations during activity, stop and check in with your care team (cardiomyopathy.org).

2. Gentle Movement That Counts

  • Walking breaks: Even a short walk to the driveway counts—especially during hot Texas days. Keep hydrated and take shade breaks.
  • Restorative yoga & Pilates: Ideal for increasing flexibility, releasing neck/shoulder tension, and easing posture issues from computer use.
  • Neck and shoulder rolls: Simple, effective micro-movements you can do at your desk or between emails.
  • Dance breaks: Lunch break dance sessions spike your heart rate gently and boost mood—plus, being your fun self is priceless.

These kinds of movement help maintain blood circulation without overtaxing your heart.

3. Building Yoga, Meditation & Mindful Relaxation

  • Yoga poses/pilates: Focus on gentle flows: Shoulder stretches, neck relief, cat-cow, child’s pose, and seated twists.
  • Mindful breathing or meditation: Even 5 minutes daily can lower stress, reduce tension, and improve cardiac rhythm control.
  • When tension shows up—pause work, take some shoulder rolls, stand up for a moment, or do a small stretch. These small pauses build up over time.

Your awareness around tension — especially in neck/shoulders—shows smart self-care in action.

4. Sleep: Your Heart and Body Depend on It

Sleep is a cornerstone of heart health. Experts recommend 7–9 hours per night for adults aged 18–64 and 7–8 hours for older adults (Wikipedia).

  • About one‑third of adults fail to meet that goal, increasing risk of heart disease, cognitive decline, and metabolic issues (EatingWell).
  • A large-body study found that consistently sleeping 7–8 hours per night improves so-called healthy aging odds by ≈18 % (verywellhealth.com).
  • Sleeping significantly less—or more—regularly has been linked to poor brain function, higher anxiety, and increased cardiovascular risk (health.com).

Tips to improve sleep:

  • Go to bed and wake up at the same time daily.
  • Avoid caffeine, heavy meals, and electronics in the 1–2 hours before bedtime.
  • Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet. Use blackout curtains or white noise if needed.
  • Use the bed only for sleep (and sex)—not for work or scrolling (Wikipedia).

5. Medications + Heart-Smart Lifestyle

  • Take meds as prescribed—especially those that support heart function like beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, or others tailored to your condition.
  • Maintain regular cardiology follow-up so dosage or activity levels can be safely adjusted.
  • Remember: movement, sleep, diet, meds, meditation—they all work together to help you find your new normal.

6. Putting It All Together: A Personalized Daily Rhythm

Time of DayActivity Suggestion
MorningGentle yoga/stretch (e.g. cat-cow, shoulder rolls), mindful breathing for 5 min
Midday/LunchDance break with your favorite tunes to move and uplift your mood
AfternoonStand/stretch break, walk to end of driveway, sip water
EveningLight resistance or Pilates session (15–20 min), especially targeting neck/shoulders
Before BedCalm routine: dim lights, stretch, avoid screens, breathe deeply for relaxation

Each activity is low impact, heart-conscious, and designed to fit your lifestyle—not overtax your heart.

✨ Final Thoughts

You don’t need vigorous jogging or high-stress workouts to stay active. In fact, for cardiomyopathy patients:

  • Low-to-moderate aerobic movement, strength training, and mind-body practices offer heart and mind benefits without overstressing the heart (childrenscardiomyopathy.org).
  • Prioritizing 7–8 hours of restorative sleep supports healing, heart resilience, and emotional well-being.
  • Combined with medication adherence and regular cardiology check-ups, these lifestyle steps define your new normal—one where you move, rest, and breathe in ways that feel good and are medically appropriate.

You’re doing an amazing job adapting to life and its changes. Keep listening to your body, loving yourself through the process—and celebrating every small, intentional move you make. You’ve got this!

Simple Practices for Grounding Yourself in Change

by Mothersense, posted in This Life
ChatGPT said:

Embracing Change with Grace, One Breath at a Time

It’s late—again—and the house is quiet, save for the occasional creak of settling floors and the low hum of our overworked fridge. These nights have become familiar, comforting even, as I sit with my thoughts, making adjustments not just to my own routine and eating habits, but also alongside my husband as he navigates changes in his job. Life feels like it’s in a constant state of transition lately—waves of change washing over our home, our schedules, our expectations. And there’s more on the horizon.

With all of this shifting, it’s easy to get swept up in the chaos. I’ve been doing my best to hold on to my anchors: my meditation practice, yoga sessions, staying consistent with my medications, and trying—really trying—to get the sleep I need. But let’s be honest: insomnia is a familiar friend, one that creeps in just as I finally find a moment of calm.

So I’m reminding myself daily: pause. Breathe. Find joy in the little things.

Because the truth is, mindfulness isn’t about perfection or having it all together—it’s about noticing. Noticing the way the sunlight filters through the blinds in the morning. The quiet satisfaction of a warm cup of tea. The soft exhale at the end of a yoga pose. Even the way my dog sighs contentedly at my feet.

If you’re navigating your own season of change, here are a few mindfulness techniques that have been helping me stay grounded:

1. The Five Senses Check-In

Take a moment and notice:

  • 1 thing you can taste
  • 2 things you can smell
  • 3 things you can hear
  • 4 things you can feel
  • 5 things you can see

This is especially useful when I’m feeling overwhelmed or spiraling into anxious thoughts.

2. Box Breathing

This simple breathing technique works wonders for calming my nervous system—especially in the middle of the night.

  • Inhale for 4 counts
  • Hold for 4 counts
  • Exhale for 4 counts
  • Hold for 4 counts

Repeat for a few minutes. It helps me feel like I’m back in control of at least one thing: my breath.

3. Gratitude Journaling

Even if I can only come up with one thing, I write it down. Some days it’s as small as “I made my bed,” or “the soup didn’t burn.” But these little victories matter.

4. Gentle Sleep Rituals

When insomnia comes knocking, I’ve found a few rituals that soften its grip:

  • A warm shower before bed
  • Soft ambient music or white noise
  • A good book (no screens!)
  • Magnesium supplements or a calming herbal tea
  • Legs-up-the-wall yoga pose (amazing for winding down)

Change is never easy. And when it comes all at once—internally and externally—it can feel like too much. But we’re adapting. Slowly, intentionally, with grace when we can and forgiveness when we fall short.

So tonight, I’m reminding myself—and maybe you too—that it’s okay to be in the middle of the mess. That peace isn’t the absence of change, but the presence of awareness. And that the little things? They’re not so little after all.

Here’s to embracing the changes, honoring the chaos, and still finding quiet in the corners.

— With love and a sleepy heart 💛

Shift Your Perspective: Transform Your Life Today

by Mothersense, posted in This Life

Ever been in a room where everything felt a little off—too loud, too dark, too uncomfortable—only to realize later that it wasn’t the room, it was just where you were sitting?

Life is often like that.

Sometimes, we find ourselves stuck in frustration, fear, disappointment, or burnout. We look around and think, This situation is hopeless. This is never going to work. Nothing is changing. But maybe, just maybe, the problem isn’t the room—it’s our seat. Our perspective.

When we’re in the thick of a struggle, it’s easy to forget that what we see isn’t all there is. We mistake our limited view for the full picture, and we let that shape our choices, our emotions, even our identity. But a shift in perspective—like walking to the other side of the room—can transform not only how we see things but what we believe is possible.

As the writer Anaïs Nin once said, “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”

A Better Seat, A Better View

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Change your mindset, change your life.” That’s not just a motivational quote—it’s a practical truth. When we step back, pause, and actively choose to look at our situation differently, new options begin to emerge. Where once we saw dead ends, we start to see doors. What felt like defeat now feels like a detour toward something better.

One of my favorite lesser-known reminders comes from author Mary Schmich:
“Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts. Don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours.”
It’s a quote about boundaries—but it’s also about clarity. Sometimes, perspective is recognizing that the discomfort we’re feeling is a signal, not a sentence.

Perspective Doesn’t Deny Pain—It Reframes It

Let’s be clear: changing your perspective doesn’t mean ignoring reality or pretending things are okay when they’re not. It means being honest about your circumstances while also being open to seeing them through a different, more empowering lens.

Poet Mark Nepo captures this beautifully when he writes:
“To listen is to lean in, softly, with a willingness to be changed by what we hear.”
And that includes listening to ourselves—our stories, our patterns, our pain. Because sometimes, the shift in perspective comes not from looking out but from looking in.

How to Shift Your Perspective

Here are a few simple ways to change where you’re “sitting” in the moment:

  1. Zoom out. Imagine advising a friend who’s in your exact situation. What would you tell them?
  2. Seek contrast. Talk to someone with a totally different experience. Their viewpoint can shed light on angles you hadn’t considered.
  3. Ask better questions. Instead of “Why is this happening to me?” try “What is this trying to teach me?”
  4. Get physically moving. A walk, a drive, or just stepping outside can break the mental loop and bring clarity.

As the philosopher Epictetus said,
“It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”
Not flashy. Not romantic. But deeply true.

In the End…

Perspective won’t magically solve every problem, but it will change how you carry it. It will determine whether the weight breaks you down—or builds you up.

So the next time life feels impossible, unfair, or too heavy, ask yourself: Is it time to change seats?

Because sometimes, a new view is all it takes to do better—and be better.

Simple Steps to Cope When Life Becomes a Disaster

by Mothersense, posted in Mental Health Recovery, Reclamation, This Life

When Your Life Is a Shitstorm: How to Pull Yourself Back from the Edge

You’re doomscrolling again. Your thumb moves, the screen refreshes, and more bad news floods in. It’s easier than thinking about your own life because, let’s face it, your life is a mess right now. Maybe it’s a slow, painful unraveling, or maybe everything collapsed at once. Either way, you’re here, trying to escape into the abyss of the internet, trying to feel something or nothing or anything other than what you are feeling right now.

First things first: Stop.

Not everything. Not forever. Just pause for a moment. Put the phone down, even if it’s just for a few seconds. You don’t have to fix everything right now. You don’t even have to do anything right now. But you do have to breathe. Not the automatic, shallow breathing that keeps you technically alive, but the kind where you take control of your own body again.

Breathe Like You Mean It

Breathe in deeply, slowly, deliberately. Feel the air fill your lungs. Hold it for a moment, then let it out. Do it again. And again. Because when everything feels out of control, this is the one thing you can control. You can’t change the past, you can’t predict the future, and you can’t force other people to act the way you want them to. But you can breathe, right now, in this moment.

Eat Something. No, Really.

Have you eaten today? No, coffee doesn’t count. Neither does the handful of crackers you barely noticed shoving into your mouth. Eat something real. It doesn’t have to be healthy. It just has to be food. A sandwich, a bowl of cereal, some fruit, even a damn granola bar—just something with actual calories and nutrients. When life is a wreck, basic self-care falls by the wayside, and eating is one of the first things to go. But you need fuel. You wouldn’t expect a car to run on an empty tank, so why are you expecting your body and mind to function when you haven’t given them anything to work with?

Drink Some Water. Yes, Right Now.

Dehydration sneaks up on you. It makes you foggy, sluggish, and more irritable. It messes with your mood and your ability to think clearly. And when you’re in crisis mode, drinking enough water is often the last thing on your mind. Grab a glass, a bottle, anything. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It doesn’t have to be lemon-infused or electrolyte-enhanced. Just drink.

Be Still.

This one is hard. We live in a world that screams at us to always be doing something, fixing something, achieving something. But when everything is a disaster, sometimes the best thing you can do is nothing. Be still. Let your body settle, let your mind settle. Give yourself permission to not have the answers, to not have a plan, to not know what comes next. Sometimes, the storm has to pass before you can even see the ground beneath your feet again.

Being still doesn’t mean you’re giving up. It means you’re letting your nervous system catch up, allowing your emotions to level out so that when you do move forward, you’re doing so with a clearer head and steadier hands.

You Are Still Here.

Life is not always fair. It is not always kind. Sometimes, it throws things at you that you never asked for and don’t deserve. But you are still here. And as long as you are here, you have choices. Maybe not the ones you wish you had, maybe not the ones that make everything magically better, but some choices.

Start with the small ones. The ones that remind you that you are, in fact, still in control of something. Breathe. Eat. Drink. Be still. And when you’re ready, take the next step. One moment, one breath, one tiny act of care at a time.

You’ve survived 100% of your worst days so far. You can survive this one too.