As I'm getting older, I'm becoming more and more aware that time is running out.
There's no guarantee, I could be gone tomorrow, but in theory, I might have another twenty years or so ahead of me.
Perhaps that sounds a bit gloomy, but I do find it invigorating to remind myself that life is too short for many silly things I've been putting up with while hanging out in my comfort zone, like social media frenzies, clutter, advertising, conspiracy nutters and beige clothes.
That list could go on and on...
Advancing age makes you grumpy but also less inclined to fall for all that BS and hype, and I keep dropping habits and beliefs that stopped me from growing and living a more fulfilled life.
So there’s a lot of everyday renewal going on in my life, which is a bizarre but very pleasing feeling.
The modern human in the Western world is hardwired to resist change, especially when life is comfortable. It's easy to get stuck in a rut, the notorious comfort zone.
Despite the cost of living crisis, we're doing okay compared to millions of people elsewhere in the world.
Michael Easter, author of The Comfort Crisis, explores how our "sheltered, temperature-controlled, overfed, underchallenged lives could actually be the leading cause of many of our most urgent physical and mental health issues…"
According to Easter, the best way to snap out of the slumber of a comfortable snowflake life is to embrace discomfort.
While Easter offers a variety of different ideas in his book, it is also up to us as individuals to discover what would work for us.
Here are some questions you can explore (feel free to use the Tarot or an oracle deck as a guide) to embrace discomfort:
What am I avoiding? Why:
What I would love to change:
Why I don't change it:
An action I can take to initiate change:
Where am I in denial?
An uncomfortable truth I need to accept:
What I don't want to know:
What is holding me back:
Something I keep delaying but I shouldn't:
What I need to do differently:
What I'm too attached to:
Why I cannot let go of it:
What am I fearful of?
How can I overcome this fear?
What do I need to be more curious about?
What do I need to be more open-minded about?
What am I always finding excuses for?
Where am I wasting resources?
What am I overconsuming?
Lies I'm telling myself (and others):
When I addressed these questions I realized that I needed to be radically honest with myself, so much so that it hurt.
Without that pain, nothing would change.
While the world is becoming more uncomfortable beyond our control, we are very much in control of our inner narrative, and this is where the mindshift happens.
I've learned that it's ok to
change my mind/goals/perspective/opinion
end a relationship
climb out of the rabbit hole
change my career
rewrite my story based on truth and self-respect
not do what everyone else is doing
ditch external validation
Comfort creates stagnation. Discomfort generates resilience and growth. Once in a while, we need to feel uncomfortable to feel alive.
Strength is the global year card for 2024. The card depicts a woman embracing a lion. Imagine, how uncomfortable you would feel in that position.
You'd be acutely aware of the risk as the lion could attack you at any moment.
But the woman applies her courage, steadfastness, gentle power, and trust to tame the beast, our inherent destructive forces.
✨How can the energies and qualities of Strength help you embrace discomfort in 2024?
✨How can you create empowering mindshifts that strengthen your resilience as we all move forward into more uncertain and unsettling times?
Mindshifts create discomfort, but you can persevere and succeed by fuelling your inner motivation with little wins along the way.
🌸SOME OF MY 2023 HEALING MINDSHIFTS🌸
Giving up sugar, ultra-processed foods, and red meat (it was hard to change a lifetime of eating habits, but gradually I made it happen)
No more snacking after 6 pm and fasting until 10 am (the urge to eat some crisps at 8 pm is excruciating, but I kept telling myself that I wouldn't starve to death and fought on😄)
Listening more to classical music (rather than the energetic disco pop, more calm and serenity. What a difference)
Listening to audiobooks in addition to printed books (I thought I didn't like audiobooks, but I was wrong. This way I can inhale more knowledge while cooking or going for a walk)
Working out in my living room in pyjamas and barefoot (gym clothes? No thanks. Who cares? Money saved)
Wearing barefoot shoes (not easy at first, especially when used to high heels or other ill-fitting footwear)
Deep reading classic literature (even when it's difficult to understand, read and read again, look up new words, learn about the author, and grow to understand the essence and message of the story)
Paying for YouTube and Spotify to avoid all the ads (there is always a price to pay for "free", in this case, it was my sanity, so I decided to pay for a service I otherwise enjoy)
✨What healing mindshifts have you experienced in 2023 that have made you feel renewed?
NEWS
My Patreon space is slowly changing. I've renamed it Cosmic Spirit Life and created some themed collections that include all the posts relating to that topic.
Billing is still paused, so if you're not a member yet, you will only pay once when you sign up, and I will announce in advance when monthly billing will resume, so you can cancel your subscription if you wish.
I've also decided to change the currency from USD to GBP, which has allowed me to increase monthly charges a little without having to create new tiers.
This price change won't affect existing members.
🌛TAROT MOON JOURNAL🌜
As a Patreon member, you can also download and print the 2024 Tarot Moon Journal Cover.
If you are not a member yet, join the Circle tier and also get access to other posts and printables.
🌟BLAST FROM THE PAST💥
Every day is a new adventure - a blog post I wrote back in the days of the pandemic. Times haven’t really changed. We’re hurtling from one shock to the next, so you might find my observations and the Adventure Tarot Spread still useful.
Until next time,
Christiane🦄🌻🌈💚
⭐If you've enjoyed this post, feel free to share it with friends or give it a 💗 Feel free to leave a comment below. I'd love to hear from you 🥰
I enjoyed your thoughts about discomfort Chistiane. 👏🏼 I definitely think it is a good idea to keep checking in with ourselves so we don't become complacent as we get older. Habits are hard to change but the beginning is the most difficult! Which oracle deck do you like to use for the journaling questions? Happy New Year to you! 😍🎉🌠🦁💪🏼