During a really difficult time in my life, a colleague/friend of mine referred me to his therapist. She lived in the hilly part of Austin and her house was nestled among trees and greenery. It felt like the perfect place to escape to where I was always received with a warm welcome and a smile.
Even pulling into her driveway offered a sense of relief because undoubtedly I knew I would be feeling better after being there. One thing I noticed that remained stuck in my mind from those visits was the bumper sticker on her car that read, “Don’t believe everything you think”.
I remember the first time I read it, I had to reread it again and then really contemplate its message. See for many years in my life, I was a walking head. I was completely consumed by own thoughts and perceptions of how I saw the world. I put a lot of stock into what my mind would tell me whether good thoughts or bad thoughts, I believed them all to be true. I mean they were my thoughts after all so why would they lie to me?
Well, the truth is that our minds do think a lot of things that are often not true and many times, it is up to us to put a stop to the thoughts that bring us down. As a school counselor, I explained this to kids by asking them to imagine all of us having an angel and a devil in our minds. One says things that make us believe in ourselves and feel good, while the other attempts to fill us up with fear and doubt.
It’s funny how our perspective constantly changes depending on our life experiences. We may read or hear about something that seems new and maybe even difficult to comprehend at first. Then a life experience happens that changes us and in the process, changes our complete outlook and understanding of it.
One of my yoga teachers would frequently say in class during practice, “You are not your thoughts”. At this point in my life, I know this for certain. My thoughts are simply a part of me. I have the choice to believe the good ones and shoo off the ones that weigh me down.
Whenever you catch yourself thinking something that causes you strife or worry, ask yourself “Am I 100% certain this is true?” And remember our mind will play tricks on us if we let it.