One of my favorite television shows is Hoarders. I am absolutely fascinated by it. I was watching just the other day and it occurred to me that people hoard habits.
When people hoard things, they don’t want to get rid of anything. They want to keep things even if they are disgusting. It could be soaked in rat urine or moldy or any number of things. But they want to keep it.
Why? Because it serves a purpose. It fills a need. In some way or another it is a comfort to have it. That is how it is with habits as well. We make habits to fill a need.
However, if the habits we make to deal with tough times in life, are on a low level, say with depression or anxiety, then it is not a long lasting solution. And so, somewhere down the line, this action or response stops working for us.
Think of it this way. When someone starts to drink alcohol to become numb, one or two drinks may do the trick. But as your body becomes accustomed to alcohol, you may need more and more to numb you from life. When you get to this point, you need something new. This is where some people turn to other stronger chemicals to numb their life.
Make sense? The same is true for the habits we make to deal with tough times. They worked for some time, but they don’t anymore. When they no longer work for you, you need to meet your needs on a higher empowering level.
But people hoard old habits as a similar manner as those who hoard things. No matter how out dated or useless this old action or habit may be, you want to hold on to it. Why? Because we think it is our only hope. We think it is the only answer. We fear that if we lose this, toss out this old habit, we we be exposed to the world defenseless. We need that comfort.
I want to urge you today to get rid of that hoard of old habits. I do understand that fear of letting go of that old habit. It is like losing an old friend. But if you want, I will be your safety net. I will take your hand and give you gentle guidance. I won’t lead you astray. I won’t let you do anything that is beyond your ability. But I will make you leave your comfort zone.
It takes going into unfamiliar territory to get where you want to be. It may take getting past the zone of fear to find your greatest peace.
Cheers!
Coach Lisa
www.facebook.com/coachLisa