Sometimes I feel like the universe knows just what to tell me at just the right time. This week it came in the form of the reminder: Be nice to yourself.
I have felt so bogged down between graduate school-essays, tests, homework, reading, more reading- work, finding someone to sublet my room (I’m officially living by myself in 3 weeks for the first time ever. The pup and I couldn’t be more excited!), working on some freelance articles for a local publication, and trying to find an ounce of time for me. ….self care of any sort has gone by the wayside. I’m officially two weeks behind in starting training for a half marathon I’m running on May 9. Eating clean and healthy has taken the form of wishful thinking-the pants are getting a little on the snug side. And my stress levels are through the roof.
As any of my friends or family will tell you, I’m notoriously hard on myself. I tend to get upset if I don’t do well on a test or don’t do a great job on a project, be it professionally or academically. Taking my first math-ish class since I was a junior in high school has solidified why I got a BA in undergrad instead, and has been constantly trying my patience –I will never ever EVER be an accountant. You’re welcome, world.- I also tend to beat myself up if I miss a gym session or eat a crappy meal – both of which have happened for the past 3 weeks or so.
Bottom line: I’m sometimes just not a very nice person to myself. And lately it’s been happening more often than not.
Commence universal intervention:
Several years ago, I watched a fascinating documentary called What The Bleep Do We Know? that centers on quantum physics and scientific anomalies. There was one particular experiment that stood out to me about how thoughts or ‘intention’ affect water molecules. Dr. Masaru Emoto studied the effects of words, thoughts, feelings, music, and prayer on the formation of water crystals. I somehow stumbled across this experiment earlier this week.
The idea was to capture water’s “expressions” and to see if any of these components would alter the aesthetics of water crystal formation (making them ‘prettier’ or ‘uglier’). In one such experiment he took regular distilled water and separated it into several different bottles where he wrote a word or phrase on a piece of paper and taped it to the outside of the container (there’s a point to all of this, I promise). The words and phrases included things like, “Love,” “Thank you,” and “You make me sick.” He then photographed the water crystals upon formation. See the differences below:
Watch this excerpt from the documentary here.
The point of this experiment is to prove that our thoughts and feelings can have significant effects on water molecules – and our bodies are made up of about 60% water, with some of our organs composed of upwards of 90% water. According to H.H. Mitchell, Journal of Biological Chemistry 158, the brain and heart are composed of 73% water, and the lungs are about 83% water. The skin contains 64% water, muscles and kidneys are 79%, and even the bones are watery: 31%.
Just imagine the impact negative thoughts and feelings, especially toward oneself, can have on the body based on this experiment. (And, whether or not you find merit in the experiment, negativity and stress can go hand-in-hand and impact one’s health and overall well-being).
I had shelved and forgotten the importance of positivity, self-encouragement, and self-love. The times when I think I don’t have time for it, or when I don’t think I merit it, or when I think I need to be hard on myself – those are really the times where I need to cut myself a little more slack, do some self-reflecting, and give myself a boost. I’m sure I’m not the only one who needs this.
Let this be a reminder this upcoming week to take some time to be good to yourself. I know I’m going to work on it.
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