This is a tip I learned in a “self-care” workshop at work: When something is hard to do, but meaningful to you, one way to support yourself through it is to highlight the reasons you are making this choice. You might do this by tying the action to your values and the things that are important to you, the way you want to be in the world. For example, as mentioned earlier, I went to my nephew’s siddur play last week. Not the hardest move in the world, but not the easiest. I wanted to attend because I was available, and I’m an adult who cares about my nephew and wants to be a part of his life (even if it doesn’t seem to matter to him at this age!)
And, I went to a shiur hosted at my friend’s house, even though (similarly to formal davening) I struggle to sit through a shiur. My friend wanted people to show up so I did.
When taking an action like this, it can be helpful to say to yourself, “I do this because ___.” What is the choice you are making?
(Photo credit: Salih/Pexels)
