The Doing Well Newsletter | Vol. 5

by Jesse Katches

today in the Doing Well newsletter we’ll talk about…

pt. 1 💭 | letting go of our negative thoughts

pt. 2 🧘 | and possibly the most important mental tool we have

💭 P A R T  |  O N E

running to me is a very therapeutic exercise. i do it often and i love it for the fact that i can allow my mind to wander and discover ideas i don’t think i would have otherwise stumbled upon. however, it doesn’t always clear my mind of intrusive or anxiety-provoking thoughts. yesterday morning on my run from Brooklyn to Long Island City, i had to cross over a small bridge (twice) in order to complete my loop. as i was coming back across the bridge for the second time, in my peak state of fatigue, struggling to catch my breath and attempting to recruit every ounce of whatever energy i had left, i approached the apex of the bridge and began looking forward to the welcoming descent on the other side. but in that moment as i inched towards relief, my peripherals caught a glance of the low safety railing of the bridge to my right and the mirky water that sat far below, and i had the intrusive thought to jump. it was a thought that came on so strong and so fast, that it caught me entirely off guard. i was scared for a moment, but without skipping a beat, i pushed on with my run and had the visual image of leaving that intrusive thought behind at that spot on the bridge where it occurred - almost as if it were a bubble that would float off from that spot, never to be seen again, and eventually popping and disappearing forever.

as my run continued, i found this visualization method that i had just inadvertently encountered immediately helpful. i’ve heard of techniques similar to this for letting go of intrusive thoughts, but this experience, in particular, made a big impact on me. what if we adopted this way of thinking for all of our anxious, intrusive, and negative thoughts?

for instance - if i’m sitting on the couch thinking “i’m not good enough,” i would visualize that thought as a transient bubble that floats into the air as i get up and walk away. by the time i return that bubble will be popped and gone forever with no chance of staying with me.

it’s so important to distinguish yourself from the thoughts you have and that practice of visually disconnecting yourself from them to show that they are not a part of you, they are not permanent, and that they hold no power in and of themselves, is an effective way to do it.

so the next time you think of an unsettling thought, try visualizing it floating away like a soapy bubble, popping somewhere off in the far distance, and never returning again.

🧘 P A R T  |  T W O

thank you for your participation in my question last week about whether your glass was half full or half empty! it was really interesting to hear your perspectives about what was encouraging and discouraging you throughout your week. as i sat and read through the responses i began to notice a common theme - that being, it wasn’t necessarily the circumstances and events that dictated whether we had a positive or negative outlook on the week, it actually boiled down to what we decided to focus on no matter what was going on in each of our lives.

what we choose to focus on during any given moment can truly shape our reality. for instance, two people may make a big mistake at work. one may focus on how they messed up, what others will think of them, and the fear of making that mistake again in the future, while the other person may focus on the lesson that they learned, and how this will make them better equipped to not make that same mistake again in the future. the circumstances are the same, but the focus is different.

i don’t know about you, but i want to be the person who focuses on growth, learning, improvement, and not the one who stays trapped in my head focusing on the things that keep me stuck, overwhelmed, and feeling hopeless. it’s not always easy to do (i’ve been both of these people), but building awareness is a big first step.

throughout the rest of the week, if you’re feeling anxious, depressed, overwhelmed, scared, or full of worry, ask yourself - “what am i focusing on right now?” and then follow up with “what could i be focusing on that would make me feel better?”

now go have a wonderful rest of your week, and as always - i love you and i’m here for you if you need me ❤️.