Recently my family has had a lot going on. We have had an extremely busy month with a seemingly overwhelming amount of things to do. My husband has been working long hours and has barely seen our son. My son is teething in the midst of a growth spurt and has been very needy of his momma, which creates a screaming fit any time I put him down. My work has been crazy demanding with a lot going on there too. To top it all off, we have construction happening in our basement having a large waterproofing job done because it keeps flooding when it rains. The dogs keep barking at the construction crew and it has been complete chaos. Needless to say, it was very easy for me to fall into a negative and limiting mindset. In fact, I’ve had to catch myself a few times being a negative Nancy. (Sorry Nancy’s [Nancies?] of the world, your name just goes along with it the best).
Last week was hard. My husband was definitely in a negative mindset and super grumpy from his work week. His long hours kept him away from home and his total face time with our son was under 2 hours. We had plans to go on a fun camping trip while our son and dogs stayed with my mom for the weekend. It was supposed to rain on Friday night and our plan was to camp in a tent. I had stayed pretty positive about the trip and wasn’t about to let a little rain stop me. Husband was being sassy about the trip and I got sucked in. I became very doom and gloom for a bit and I even went so far as to tell my fellow campers that we may have to bail. I was able to catch myself getting sucked in. I reminded myself that sometimes in relationships, even though it’s easier to commiserate, you may need to be the one to pull the other up. So, I decided to fake it til I made it. I put on a smile and kept a positive attitude. I reminded my husband of why the trip would be fun — good company, nature, fellow campers that are also “glampers” allowing us to use their nicer facilities during awake times, and the relaxation. I was able to convince him to go with the caveat that if it got too rough, we could just come home. We were only camping about 10 minutes away so it wasn’t a big deal. In the process of getting out of the house with the dogs and my son, I was working on packing up the dogs and my son while my son screamed at me and the dogs were freaking out because I was packing stuff. I got my son eating a snack in his high chair and was able to get the things in the car. Then, as I got the dogs in the car, a crazy downpour occurred. I carried my son to the car through the downpour and he chose that moment to fight me about getting into his car seat, which never happens. I ride the struggle bus for a while but eventually get him buckled in and I’m soaked to the bone. As I was driving to my mom’s house (12 minutes away), one dog vomited in her bed while the other one crapped in my front seat. AHHHH! I got to mom’s, got everyone inside, unpacked the car, and cleaned my seats. I was able to keep up the positive attitude and remind myself that it’s all going to be OK.
We ended up going on the camping trip and having a great time despite the mosquitoes and rain. My son enjoyed being with his grandma and the dogs mellowed out. As soon as I mellowed, so did they. Everything was great. Had I not had a little mindset shift, everything could have been terrible and not worth it. We very well could have had a much different experience if we weren’t choosing to stay positive despite hurdles. There will always be hurdles. Life will always throw stuff at you unexpectedly. Sometimes it will be good and sometimes bad. It’s how you decide you’re going to handle it that matters. Your mindset can turn any situation one way or the other. Since I have been working on mindful practices, I’ve already seen much of my life transform. Little things in the day-to-day that have stressed me out in the past no longer have a negative impact on me. I’ve been working hard on sending out good vibes into the universe and they’ve come back to me several-fold. I don’t dread the things I used to. I’m able to hit the ground running and wade through the tough moments with ease all because I refuse to let myself get into a negative mindset.
Here are some tips to help you keep a positive mindset in almost any situation:
- Consider the impact of the challenging moment on your life 30 days from the present. Often times, you’ll realize that you probably won’t even remember it happened or realize that it isn’t worth freaking out over for one reason or another.
- Remind yourself that you get to choose how you’d like to feel. Do you want to feel happy or miserable? Most people want to be happy. Depression and similar disorders aside, we have the power to choose how we want to feel each day. For example, instead of having to wake up early to get your coffee before your kids are up, you get to get up early and have coffee before your kids are up. What a blessing!
- Consider the things that are going good. Do you have a roof over your head? Do you have food for you and your family to eat? Do you have a working internet connection? Not everyone has these things. Remind yourself of the simple luxuries that are steadfast in your life and be grateful for them. It’s a great way to help change your perspective.
- Acknowledge what’s going wrong and let it go. Life goes on. It will always go on as long as you are breathing. It’s OK to acknowledge that something isn’t going the way you planned. Let it go. Remember that sh*t happens and you will get through it. When have you ever not gotten through something difficult? You always get through it. You got this! YOU GOT THIS!
- Find yourself a different perspective. Do something that makes you happy to help you turn your mindset around in a positive way. Listen to your favorite inspiring podcast (Shameless Mom Academy anyone?), go for a walk, paint your nails, eat some junk food. Whatever makes you happy in the moment, do that and consider how you can turn this negative experience you’re going through around.
No matter your current situation, a shift in your mindset to a positive direction can change your life. It has been proven time and time again that the more positive energy you put out into the universe, the more comes back to you. The same goes for negative energy. Keep those positive vibes going as much as possible and I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Much love and positive vibes,
Momma Caped Nerd ❤
Do you have questions or suggestions for Momma Caped Nerd? Did this post inspire or help you in any way? Let me know by leaving a comment below or by visiting my Contact page. I’d love to hear from you!
Caped Nerd Momma Blog 
Hello Momma Caped Nerd. I just read your post. I think I learnt a thing or two from your post. I agree with you that we need to begin to carve out the life that we want for ourselves, and keeping a positive mindset is central to carving out our ideal life.
However, I do have a suggestion for you. If I may ask, do you believe in God? Life does throw situations at us and sometimes they indeed can be hard to deal with. However, we do not have to go through them alone. God is our creator, a supreme being, and an ever present help in times of need. If we have a true and good relationship with God, he is faithful and does help us in our time of need. When we walk with God, he has the power to give us the gift of the holy spirit. Concerning the holy spirit, Galatians 5:22 says “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness”. The presence of the holy spirit should be able to help us to overcome a negative mindset.
The bible says in Philippians 4:6-7: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus”.
I suggest that you give a relationship with God a try.
If you wish to start a relationship with God (if you do not already have one), here are the steps that I usually recommend:
1) find a quiet space free from distractions, a place where you can pray.
2) imagine that Jesus is in front of you, talk to him the way you will with a close friend. Tell him that you are ready to accept him, invite him to come into your life and become your lord and personal savior. Ask for forgiveness of past sins. Tell Jesus that you want to die to your old self and be reborn as a new creation in him. Pray that you inherit eternal life and the kingdom of God. Beware of sudden distractions when you pray, this is a trick the devil uses to stop us from having focused prayers. You might also get the feeling that God is not there or that you are simply wasting your time, this is another trick that the devil uses to discourage us from prayers.
3) If you have any specific prayers, or something specific that you need, you can ask it in Jesus name, and God would attend to the prayers. God usually has three answers to prayers: Yes, Yes but wait, and No. God has a reason for every answer, and his answers are usually what is best for you. When you pray, you need to have faith that you will receive. God does not like it when we pray but doubt his ability to provide what we want for us. Lastly, prayers and faith without works wont bring results. E.g. If all a person does is prays and has faith that they would get a job, without actually applying to jobs, they WOULD NOT get a job. God does not work that way, God loves hard-working people, and God rewards hard-work. If all Christians had to do is pray, have faith, and stay home all day awaiting a blessing, Christians would be the laziest people on earth. LOL. Your part is to pray that God should fast-track your success, so that you recieve your blessings quicker than people who are relying on their own strength. Your blessings might also come in a bigger way. Remember to thank God when you get the answers to your prayers.
4) Read the bible and obey it. You can find free bibles online. You can also find free bible apps on google play. Keep praying all the time and maintain a connection with God.
5) Trials and tribulations may come your way, sometimes these are designed to test your faith, and sometimes they are simply tricks from the devil to get you to denounce the religion. At times like this, you pray to God, you fast, and you maintain consistency in the faith, this way, God would lift you above all trials and afflictions.
6) You can join a community of bible believing Christians. Having friends who are believers would keep you on track, and the conversations about the religion would be beneficial to your faith.
7) Get a water baptism, and pray to God so that you can receive a baptism in the holy spirit.
8) Begin to educate yourself on the things of the lord. Read books from ministers who have practised deliverance, healing, seeing in the spirit, and other gifts. Read about how they got these anoiting and learn more about the workings of the spiritual realm through Christian books.
(The things written in this list are not to be followed in any particular order. The most important thing is to begin by asking for a forgiveness of sins, confess Jesus as your personal lord and saviour, and pray for eternal life. You can mix up the order of the rest. However, I strongly suggest you do them all simultaneously).
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. May God guide you and bless you, Amen.
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Hello and thank you for your comment. I have a wonderful relationship with God and am a believer through and through. The Lord is my first go-to in time of need and in time of abundance. While my faith is strong, I understand that many of my readers may not share my faith or praise our wonderful Lord in the same way I do. My blog is meant to be a welcoming place for all walks of life. It is important to me that people feel comfortable here regardless of their background. While I may mention my faith in my blog posts occasionally, it’s purpose is not to preach His word, but rather to focus on ways of getting more done that everyone can use regardless of their current relationship with the Lord. I’m glad you enjoyed the post. God bless!
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Thank you for your kind response. God bless you too.
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