What To Do When You Can’t Think Straight

I recently had a discussion with a client about this topic and I think the ideas talked about would make a good basic list I’d like to share with you so here goes:

1 Clear the physical clutter

Let go of the old to make some physical and psychic space for yourself. Tidy up and rearrange neatly the stuff you DO want to keep. Sounds so obvious but it really does make a difference in the energy and how you feel straightaway. Aim to make your immediate environment beautiful, peaceful and uplifting – don’t allow anything else in your sacred space.

2 Clear mental clutter

by writing down a stream of consciousness – the “Morning Pages” of “The Artist’s Way” book. Write 3 pages of thoughts without censoring or abbreviating anything. Do this once a day or at ad hoc moments when you are feeling particularly confused.
If you can’t think of anything to write put the first thing that comes
into your head even if it’s “I can’t think of anything to write”. Once you
have been doing this for a while you may notice patterns of thoughts. Now it’s time to start picking out relevant sentences from amongst the crap which show you what actions you need to take next. Use this as a stepping stone to better things in life.

This technique can also be directed at any particular issue: for example I am going to write 3 pages of stuff about “feeling so confused” or about “finding my true purpose”. Make sure you pick out any relevant action steps afterwards to harness the energy.

If words aren’t your thing then you can express the confusion and any
other feelings in other ways, painting and drawing especially scribbling
or drawing a mandala or figure of eight sign on it’s side (the sign of infinity) over and over, making a noise, drumming or rattling, kicking and punching a punch bag or a large pillow until you feel the feelings are spent.

3 Meditate for at least 15 minutes

Do a grounding exercise first (imagine you have grown roots and extend them into the ground). The classic zazen (zen sitting) meditation is to count your breaths 10 times and then start again. One breath is one inhale and one exhale. If you lose concentration and your count then start again at number one. If random thoughts come into your head just acknowledge them and breathe them out. Don’t hold onto them. There are loads of other types of meditation but this is a good basic one to start with.

4 Get some fresh air

Go for a walk outside, go to the park, the garden, a hilltop or somewhere else quiet. Even if it’s for a few minutes this can make a big difference. Walk briskly and swing your arms, breathe deeply and slowly.
Being near water, especially running water is good for creativity and
realigning to the rhythm of nature. Sitting at the base of a tree is also
re-energising. (Ask it’s permission first – you may be surprised to find
how helpful and loving trees can be to us humans). Being up high on a hilltop or in a flat, wide open meadow or beach that gives a large view of the horizon is uplifting too.

5 Check your blood sugar

If you are feeling a bit weak and wobbly, sweating and fuzzy headed your blood sugar may be too low. Eating some protein and complex carbs can help in the short-term. A boiled egg, nut butter (almond is my favourite) on oatcakes, a handful of mixed nuts and raisins do the trick for me. The secret though is to stop it getting low in the first place by avoiding simple sugars and eating small but regular amounts.
If you have trouble controlling your blood sugar this could indicate a weakness in the spleen organ’s ability to distribute chi throughout the body (in Chinese traditional medicine). This can result in low and high blood sugar peaks and troughs, shakiness, fuzzy thinking (the spleen doesn’t have the power to pump the chi high enough up the body), indecisiveness, instability of emotions, feeling homeless or rootless, feeling empty in the centre of our being, feeling generally insecure. To help the spleen you can eat foods that nourish it such as sweet root vegetables e.g. sweet potato, beetroot etc. Connect with mother earth by walking bare foot on the earth and spending time in nature, gardening and listening to the songs the earth and the trees share with us. Hugging friends, family, lovers or pets is also good and as is having a therapeutic massage. Doing grounding exercises and martial arts or tai chi help also in grounding and centring.

Related posts:

1. No More Morning Pages
2. Info Overload
3. Clarity Breeds Serenity & Other Things Too!
4. Is Clutter Clearing Always a Positive Experience?