Time out. We think of it as a punishment for bad behavior in kids. Or as a break from the day to day grind.

But what if we used it in our lives as a way to step away from one aspect of our lives that may be creating a great deal of stress? That gives time out a whole different meaning.

You push, pull and bang your head against the wall over this one area of your life and it appears to get you nowhere. So you try a different approach, using head busting logic to will it to change. No luck there either.

“So now what?” you may ask. The answer, take a time out. (or a sabbatical, if that sounds better to your ears).

Whatever you call it, it should clue your mind into the notion of being put on notice…“We (you and your mind) are no longer thinking or acting on this one aspect of our life right now!”

There doesn’t that feel better all ready? Your shoulders drop down to a normal level, your jaw unclenches and your breathe begins to deepen.

This is where I am right now as I write this post, I have put one aspect of my life on notice and refuse to deal with it until I’m  good and ready.

Does that mean I’m in denial?

No, not at all. What it means is I’m tired of going over the same old stuff in my head and getting nowhere, so I’m taking a time out, a step back, a beautiful sabbatical from that aspect of my life.

I haven’t set a time limit because I trust that I will know when the time is right to come back, to gently step back into the edges of this aspect of my life with a new awareness.

And if I decide not to allow this back in my life then at least I stepped away long enough to make a good decision instead of one made in haste or anger.

I know I made this sound a little too easy and it’s not, it requires some patience (with yourself) and a willingness to let go of drama, expectations and lots of head chatter. And your time out may only require an afternoon, a day, a week or it might be like mine, a little longer.

Stop beating yourself up, instead step up and allow yourself the freedom to step away. You might be surprised at the changes you make when you are ready to step back in.

Share this post with a friend who may also need to take a “time out” in their lives. 

As a massage therapist for 20+ years, I use my eyes more than my ears when I ask a client how they are feeling. Their body tells me the whole story while my client may only give me the “cliff notes.” My ears then listen for the real story as they talk about what is happening in their lives.

Every pain, ache and discomfort has a story to tell which is usually more than the “I did too much yard work or lifted something the wrong way.” Yes these things can cause the issues but when they keep recurring the story line goes a little deeper blending in a mix of emotions to make the story even more interesting.

Making changes in your life can set off those pesky pain triggers, whether it is from a financial worry (lower back/sciatic pain) to feeling like you are carrying the weight of the world (neck and shoulder discomfort) or just good ole resistance (knees/hip pain) telling you that change is a bad idea.

And you thought you just had to worry about the naysayers in your life when you started making changes, right? 

Muscles (my specialty) have memory and a lot to say if we stop long enough to listen especially when you are trying out a new exercise routine and one particular move just doesn’t feel right.

Too much information at one time (different forms of bodywork along with a new exercise routine) can create a situation in your body which resembles the antics of 2 year old toddler, whose favorite word is “No” followed by an unwillingness to do the things you want them to do.

Muscles can only digest little bits of information at a time and when they are full and don’t want to “hear” one more thing, they stomp their little muscle feet and say……”NO.” (which usually results in tighter muscles)

Your body and that “inner critic” voice in your head are in cahoots together too. Yep, if they both think something is not a good idea, they will pull up the emergency brake and put your butt on the couch.

Sound familiar? 

But your body is also the master voice of “gut instinct” (intuition) and that is a voice worth listening to. 

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Your body is an amazing thing and there isn’t any technology available that can duplicate all of the wonderful things it can do every second of every day. Most of the time your body knows when there is a problem before you even have a clue and has auto corrected it without you doing anything.

Awwww Apple, the human body can still one up you!

So where do you go from here? Throw up your hands, call it quits giving in to that persistent ache or just bulldoze forward?

Here’s some suggestions:

• Become a detective and a friend to all of the nuances of your body.
• Start a conversation, asking your body what it wants and how you can make its job easier.
• Respect it’s signals and honor its voice.
• When a pain or ache becomes persistent spend time looking at the whole picture of what’s going on in your life.
• Stretch and move more (dance even). This keeps things loose and can also help to open up that one little area that won’t quite let go of its tightness.

I hope this has opened your eyes a little more to all the things that affect you and the beautiful body you live in. Now I would love to hear from you in the comment section about how that persistent ache may have awakened you to the real issue in your life.

Share the love of this post with someone in your life that needs to see that a “pain in their back” may have a whole lot more to say.

photo credit: Samantha Evans Photography via photopin cc