Saying "respond well" to yourself...

[BloodMoon]

I was really impressed with a lot of the things the interviewee - who recovered from CFS and other mind-body symptoms - said in this video below. One of the things that she advised helped her so much with her recovery, and continues to keep her well, is that when things are difficult and/or going wrong, you simply say to yourself "respond well" (this is mentioned at points elsewhere in the video, but particularly at time stamp 32.03).

I've started to apply this in my own life to include when I'm finding it hard to cope and/or I am about to react badly to something or I find myself in the middle of reacting badly to something (whatever that might be) -- and, she's right (and imo on to something special here) as I'm finding it so helpful!

I know the usual advice is to feel our feelings and not deny them, but when you've got a generally catastrophising bias going on with your lizard brain like I have, I've found that I've needed to redirect my thoughts to be able to get on with life as best I can (as Dr Sarno advised us all to do)... And now, in simply saying "respond well" to myself and then doing just that, e.g. taking a deep breath, changing my body position, self-soothing or moving thoughts on to a practical solution etc., it makes it so quick and relatively easy to do this (and it instantly lightens the spirit too).

Anyway, perhaps see if taking her advice gels with you too...

TIME STAMPS:
00:00 Meet Adrianne Sist
02:02 The Turning Point She Found
02:24 50+ Symptoms, No Solutions
03:41 What Finally Gave Her a Plan
04:05 When Every Attempt Made Her Worse
04:45 What an "Adjustment Period" Actually Is
05:23 Why "Crash" Is the Wrong Word
06:08 Crashes Are Part of Recovery
07:19 Calling the Ambulance
08:00 How Her Own Response Made It Worse
09:11 The Sickness Response — Why This Is So Hard
11:07 The Stigma She Had to Let Go Of
13:02 When to Expand and When to Pull Back
13:42 Are You a Pusher or an Avoider?
15:01 The Fear That Keeps Avoiders Stuck
16:32 Sitting Down in the Shower
17:14 "Can I Somewhat Do This?"
17:51 Should I Do This Activity?
18:42 The First Question to Ask Yourself
20:12 The Concert Example
21:41 Closing the Loop After a Flare
23:32 What If Symptoms Hit While You're Out?
25:33 Always Have an Exit Plan
26:27 When Everything Goes Out the Window
27:25 What Full Recovery Actually Means
28:36 "I Never Thought I'd Have a Family"
29:44 Recovery Isn't Sunshine and Rainbows
30:55 Pregnancy Without the Symptoms Returning
32:03 The Nail Polish Test
32:44 You Only Need to Respond Well 30% of the Time
34:19 A Message to Women Who Want a Family

 

[Sita]

The idea is good. And effective. I didn't watch it but I know the concept. I use "I am at peace, I am calm. I am at peace, I am calm"...over and over mentally. And it works.

Meditation brings peace into the mind. And the idea is the keep as long as possible - the effects of meditation. This peace. I mean even after you finished meditating.

But the repeated mantra about peace...has results.

I recommended using this. Or the mantra from the video that you shared. Anything that can make you pause and stay calm and react with a relaxed mind.

 

[BloodMoon]

Anything that can make you pause and stay calm and react with a relaxed mind.

I definitely agree. And I've found that even just saying a mantra once or twice in succession, or just giving yourself the instruction to "respond well" without any repetition can do the trick... I think that's because of the pause this creates (just as you point out). I also think because I'm giving myself an instruction to "respond well" my brain likes it... it likes being given something to do and strangely doesn't seem to baulk at the instruction being a positive one when it was either in or about to go into a negative mode.