Five A’s to Creating Change
What does change mean to you?
Change seems to be such an easy concept to grasp—in our minds. But when life hits you alongside the head and places demands on you, you aren’t ready for it. So, what’s the first thing you do? You react. Instead of taking time to stop, think and problem solve, most of us react without thinking.
Imagine you’re a parent of a child who has had inconsistent academic and behavioral problems in school for the past two years. You’re sitting in a doctor’s office and she just told you that your child has ADHD. Part of you may be relieved but at the same time, you might be filled with anxiety and fear. You don’t know where these feelings are coming from, but they are there and you feel the world suddenly spinning around you.
Your brain may kick into high gear with questions like; “What is ADD? How do I manage the challenges of ADD? Does he need medication? Why didn’t the school recognize this?” What do I do first? And if your partner isn’t on board believing that ADD truly is real, you may even begin to wonder how to get them on board. That is a LOT to have placed on you all of a sudden. But stop! The first thing you should consider doing is this–find a place to decompress and just breathe! Don’t think, don’t question, don’t panic–just breathe.
Stopping the negative cycle
In order for you to think clearly, you have to first clear your mind. If you don’t, your brain is going to kick itself into overdrive and emotions will block all logic. Your emotions will tell you to be fearful or frightened. They will zap your confidence and tell you that you will fail. Then you find yourself in a reactive mode with no plan and a lot of anxiety.
In the end, you’re left feeling incomplete, inadequate, frustrated, and deflated. If this cycle doesn’t stop, and if you continue to wing it on your own, it causes more frustration and anxiety, and nothing ever changes.
You need to buy yourself time to think objectively. You need the ability to process clearly, and then question and plan your next move, logically. In order to successfully create change in your life, you must slow down and take 5 simple steps. Now you’re ready to think about and question what needs to be done. If you walk through these steps each time you’re faced with challenges, you will feel more energized and confident to make logical decisions. You’ll have a clearer focus for what’s important and spend less time on what’s not. Stress is gone and you now have tools and know how to use them. You are prepared energized, confident and determined. It just takes 5 steps to get here.
Are the Five A’s for everyone?
YES! If you are trying to improve your health, start a job or starting over in a new place, this process will help you through the emotional roller coaster ride. Like the stages of grief, your emotions will drive your movement forward. This is a very brief description of the process to help you better understand the stages you need to walk through so you can successfully manage change in any situation. Trust yourself as you push forward to be the person the world is waitng for.
“The Five A’s for Creating Change.”
- Awareness – The critical element of change – if you don’t know who you are or what you want, you can’t create a roadmap to get to that place. You give yourself permission to open your senses and experience everything around you, non-judgmentally.
- Acknowledgment – You have given yourself time to open your mind and appreciate the present moment; it’s time to assess and acknowledge the change that needs to take place. You are then more aware of how you respond to situations rather than how you react to them, and what needs to change.
- Acceptance – Defining the types of feelings you experience awakens the present conscious so your brain can interact with your feelings. Your heart and brain are now aligned and working—empowering you.
- Attitude – The most difficult of all the A’s. You’re ready to commit to change, to realizing your options and exploring them one step at a time. The most difficult step, yet the most empowering. The sky’s the limit!
- Action Planning – You will gather up all your resources, lay them all out, and create the path to open all the possibilities, with determination. What was only a thought is now your new beginning. You know your destination, your focus is sharp, and you take your first step.
I want to invite you to join me on an incredible journey over the next few weeks and consider each of these A’s in your
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Cathy lives in Roanoke, Virginia and specializes in supporting families who are willing to commit to improving their health so they can live their healthiest life possible. She is a certified Health Coach & Educator with a strong passion for supporting each client in their journey to feeling stronger, healthier, and more energetic. Cathy presents workshops online and locally and regularly talks about real food, fitness, natural living, and all things ADHD.
Cathy is the creator of the Holistic Wellness Academy, an online training platform that will soon provide other wellness advocates with a place to share their expertise with their clients, so they too can learn how to eat smart, move more, feel better and live longer.
