It was a dark and stormy night. No, really. It was dark because it was two in the morning and it was raining and windy. This is really how my story starts.
So..
It was dark and stormy night and doors were banging in the wind, causing much sleep struggle in this parent’s world. See, there is some construction going on behind my house and they just recently put doors on the houses. Doors with no latches that bang obnoxiously with every breeze.
My husband and I are angrily laying awake, mentally bitching the construction workers who “did” this to us. Damn them for doing their job, but not thinking of how it will affect others. Why the hell are the neighbors not doing anything about this? Are we the only ones that hear this? Bitch, moan, complain, but do nothing.
About an hour into this and Mike and I were getting angry with each other. Messed up sleep makes for messed up parents. Finally I had an “ah-ha” moment, and being me, I said it out loud.
“We can either lay here, mentally complaining and blaming, or we can go over there and fix the problem and maybe get some sleep tonight.”
After saying this I decided I was going to do something, with or without Mike. Me also being me, I managed to guilt Mike into joining me. Hand-in-(forced)-hand, out we went, into the rain to stop the doors from destroying the remainder of our sleep. I probably should mention that the kiddo was at his grandparents, so we didn’t leave him home alone.
It really wasn’t that hard. The hard part was actually getting out of the bed and into the rain. By the end of it we managed to enjoy ourselves. I haven’t wandered around a neighborhood in the dark in years and we checked out the new construction. It got us out of our heads and into accomplishing something. When we crawled back into bed we were happier with ourselves and with each other. Sleep came surprisingly quick. Of course, it was after 3 AM.
This is the thing about most of us, we know that we need to do something to improve our lives, get healthier, sleep better, be happier, but we fail to do anything about it. Knowing is not the problem, doing is the problem. Or maybe it’s the thinking about the doing that is our problem. Over thinking is often the problem for everything that is a struggle. Often things are never as bad as we think they are going to be. We just have to get out of our heads and do something.
Have you ever heard of “swallowing the frog”? It basically means doing something you really don’t want to do, but probably needs to be done. The saying is really gross and creates feelings of discomfort. Generally things we don’t want to do cause a similar feeling.
My main reason for bringing this up is to get you to stop and realize that you are wasting more time thinking about an uncomfortable thing than it would take you to do it and be done. I avoid cleaning the toilet like a plague, but I’d be tons happier if I just did it and quit thinking about it. Pondering the porcelain is a poor pastime. Hahahaha!
The cool thing is that an action causes more action and suddenly the whole house is clean. There is great pride in accomplishing something you didn’t want to start in the first place. Finding a way to make an unpleasant task more pleasant makes it even better.
So whether you are cleaning, midnight neighborhood romping, or calling your least favorite person, it is really important to get out of your head and just slurp that thing down. Drag someone along, play some music, or find someone to talk to about it later, but do it and make it as fun as possible. Maybe even asking yourself how this could be fun could change a situation to a more positive one.
I really want you to try this one. Find one thing you’ve been putting off and stop thinking and start doing. Succeed and be proud, and maybe tell me about it.
Have a hopping good day!
Katie
Health Coach Katie 