Last week was about stress fractures and paying attention to warning signs.  We are going to build off this idea by exploring MRIs and stillness.

As I mentioned in the last entry, I had been battling shin pain for months before going to see the doctor.  He sent me to get an MRI, so he could diagnose what was going on.  You must be STILL for a MRI to work, and I am a huge fidgeter.  I muster all my focus to be as still as possible as I lay on an uncomfortable platform while being inserted into a loud and strange machine.  I sit still for what feels like forever, as the MRI takes images.  I must have been still enough, because the images were able to show the stress fracture.

What does this have to do with anything?  In order for the MRI machine to work and take quality images, I had to be still.  I was able to find stillness, despite being anxious in a loud and distracting environment.  Embracing stillness, helped diagnose the issue.  I wish I was as good at finding stillness on a consistent basis in work and life.  Instead of making time for stillness, I feel I’ve been consumed by flurries of activity for the past few months.  Some of this is unfortunate circumstances, a perfect storm of being short-staffed and having random fires pop up at work and home.  Some of this also is a result of me not searching for and making time for stillness.  Instead, I’d wake up and get to work, hoping I’d catch up.  Then after work, I’d get back to work, hoping to catch up.  (#spoilers I never caught up.  Sound familiar?)  There was always more work that needed to be done.  Since I wasn’t embracing stillness, I wasn’t slowing down to look at how the toll all of this was taking on my physically, mentally, and socially.

Fast forward to today.  I still have more work than I could ever accomplish, so that hasn’t changed. (Anyone else feel that way?)  One of the main differences is that I’m being more deliberate about embracing stillness.  While embracing stillness is not a solve for all problems, it is something I can control, and it is a consistent series of steps in the right direction.  For me, I’m doing a better job of honoring my morning routine of waking up, working out, and meditating (#Headspace) BEFORE I ever check my phone or computer.  If I check my computer or phone first, my stillness is gone for the morning.  At night, I’m being more deliberate about turning off any screens or work-related activity by a certain time, so I can wind down.  I’ve found the more consistent I am with these rituals, the better off I am.  The more I embrace stillness, the better I can understand what is going on around me and within me, so I can adjust accordingly.

The challenge:  What does embracing stillness look like for you?  How often are you embracing stillness?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry