![\"comfort_tree\"](\"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/dicomfort_tree-730x450.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nChange requires doing something you may not feel comfortable with. Making lasting change takes time, commitment, and repetition. If you can\u2019t settle into some discomfort, you\u2019ll likely be ineffective in achieving significant difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We often seek to avoid discomfort. Avoidance comes in so many forms we may not recognize it. Denial is a form of avoidance. Busyness can be a form of avoidance. Drugs or alcohol can be used to avoid. Video games, social media, binge watching, excessive volunteering, and sleeping can all be used to keep discomfort at bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But when we restrict each day to our comfort zone, we miss out on the many layers that define a full life. We miss the entertainment of friends who think differently. We miss disruptors that can deepen our understanding. We miss soreness that means we\u2019re gaining strength or flexibility. We may miss our best health, deep connection, awe inspiring views, innovative ideas, or flavorful food. It\u2019s worth considering that we could be missing out on life\u2019s best moments in order to hang onto comfortable ones.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ever cry when you smash your finger only to have your dad say, \u201cMy dad would have said stop crying or he\u2019d give you something to cry about.\u201d It\u2019s not a bad thing that pain and injury often meet more compassion now. But not all injury or pain is catastrophic<\/a>, and expectation of immediate and complete relief from all levels of discomfort is unrealistic. Reassessment of your perspective may be necessary if you believe all discomfort is bad. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As you begin to build tolerance for discomfort, it can be helpful to dig deeper. Underneath a general feeling of nervous energy you may find a specific emotion or group of emotions related to the change you\u2019re hoping to make. Identifying fear, sadness, embarrassment, sorrow, longing or whatever feeling(s) applies will help you develop an appropriate plan for handling whatever bubbles up.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We often avoid making change because we don\u2019t want to feel emotions we deem bad or negative. Emotions are not inherently good or bad and our relationship with them can change. We can view pain as a punishment or a helpful signal that there\u2019s something we need to address. When you find a sticking point, imagine how you might feel if it were opposite day. You can approach this as a game. Play with it and see what happens. You\u2019re learning to reframe<\/a>. Reframing is a powerful tool at everyone\u2019s disposal.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A lot of us watch elite athletes overcome injury and think, they can do it because they have amazing doctors, and facilities, and support. It\u2019s true, they do. But they still experience pain and discomfort. A good takeaway may be that discomfort is easier to tolerate with support.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you have a framework and support, it\u2019s just a matter of practice. Let yourself stay in discomfort for a minute longer today than you did yesterday. Slowly, but surely, you\u2019ll get comfortable with discomfort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Making any sort of lasting change requires getting comfortable with discomfort. I know, sounds oxymoronic, but bear with me. Doing the familiar is more comfortable than doing something new. But doing the familiar means little to no change. That\u2019s what keeps it familiar. Change requires doing something you may not feel comfortable with. Making lasting … Continue reading “Getting Comfortable with Discomfort”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46,14,12],"tags":[3647,31,3403,3649,3648,411,3358],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5590"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5590"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5590\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5603,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5590\/revisions\/5603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"ad\"](\"https:\/\/www.cooking2thrive.com\/blog\/c2tblog-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/STC_ad_22_OL-9.png\")
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