Welcome to The Harmonious Mind,
A time to slow down and calm your nervous system.
I'm Tanya McIntyre,
Your mindfulness mentor.
The Harmonious Mind offers a series of short vignettes to gently guide you to a more balanced life of peace and serenity.
Listen to this the way you would listen to music,
With an open mind and curiosity.
There's nothing to do,
Nowhere to go.
Just relax.
Today,
We'll explore how The Road Less Traveled can help us maintain better mental health.
When I was 18,
My philosopher dad gave me a book that was written by Dr.
M.
Scott Peck.
It was called The Road Less Traveled.
Back in the 70s,
That book was considered a new psychology of love,
Traditional values,
And spiritual growth.
That book changed the course of my life.
Instead of following my peers to university to pursue a degree,
I hopped on a train and traveled from the East Coast to the West Coast of Canada,
And I launched a broadcasting career.
I had some regrets about that decision for a while,
Mainly because of the social constructs that keep telling us our value is attached to how many degrees we can earn,
Or the titles we can have,
How many letters come after our name.
If you don't fit that mold,
Your inner dialogue can sometimes be too pessimistic.
That negative self-talk fed my addictions for a long time.
I felt depressed,
Anxious,
Frustrated,
And irritable many days.
Alcohol and other drugs made life bearable for me.
I finally realized I was living my life on autopilot,
By default,
Instead of by intention.
What's a life of intention?
It's asking for what you truly want from this brief,
Precious gift of life we've been given.
How many people truly stop and take the time to ask and answer that question,
What do I want?
In the Western world,
We are the most stressed,
Depressed,
Overweight,
And over-medicated population in history.
Those numbers provide a clear picture that most people are dissatisfied,
With their jobs,
And with their overall satisfaction in life.
Life can be mundane.
Depending on the role you play,
You're likely following the same routine.
You're going to work,
Getting groceries,
Doing countless other errands.
If you add children to that mix,
You're shuttling them around to various activities,
Getting them to do their homework,
Getting them to minimize their screen time,
Getting them to bed at a decent hour.
Oh my gosh,
The end is on and on and on with kids.
Somewhere in that mix,
You might even have some time for yourself before you head off to bed at a decent hour.
When you wake up,
The same cycle begins the next day.
When you follow the road less traveled,
You'll start asking those difficult questions about what you truly want in your life.
I encourage you to start asking and answering these questions to help you define your core values.
What do I want in my life?
Why do I want it?
What am I doing to get it?
How do I feel about what I'm doing about it?
What can I do differently to get what I want?
And what would changing what I do and getting what I want make me feel?
There are two ways to be content in life.
To get everything you want,
Or to want everything you have.
I like to think there are three solutions to every problem.
We can accept it,
We can change it,
Or we can leave it.
If we can't accept it,
We can potentially change it.
And if we can't change it,
We can choose to leave it.
It sounds really simple,
I know,
But it's definitely not easy.
Thank you so much for being here with me.
I hope these insights offer you some comfort and serenity.
Please join me for upcoming explorations of the harmonious mind.
Until then,
May your coffee,
Your heart,
And your patience be strong.
I'm Tanya McIntyre,
Your mindfulness mentor.
May the force of mindfulness be with you always.
And remember,
You are the force.
