Living Life Juicy

When I first met Dave Hopkins he ran marathons, played guitar, sang and worked with Junior High students at a camp. Energy and activity poured from him. He was also a detail oriented person. This made it very easy for Dave to be critical. Often he said that it was a challenge to have a positive outlook and that "every day you choose to develop a critical spirit or a thankful spirit." It was by daily choosing to be thankful that Dave could see the world positively. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) became a part of Dave's world a few years after I met him. At first the impact on his energy and activity was minimal. As he learned to live in this new reality he continued to say "every day I choose to develop a thankful spirit rather than a critical spirit." And he did. I could see him struggle with both his disease and being critical. And I watched him choose thankfulness. As the MS progressed Dave could no longer run so he started riding a bicycle. He lost the ability t...

I received advice concerning walking with lions that relates to emotional triggers as well. "It's not the lions you see that should worry you. It's the lions you don't see." Triggers work the same way. As we become aware of situations, issues or people who are likely to push our buttons we prepare ourselves and guard against an "amygdala hijack." But how can we prepare for the ambush triggers when our guard is down? Knowing what you are feeling removes the bullet from the chamber before the trigger can be pulled. Noticing how you are feeling, good or bad, is a start but identifying what you are feeling, frustrated, content, energized, angry, etc, helps you respond intentionally in the moment. If you become aware of your feeling and identify to what event or interaction that feeling specifically relates you can better manage your emotions. Rather than fighting the urge to react you can use your best judgment to choose the behavior that increases your in...