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Tips and resources for mental well-being, emotional resilience, and creative expression for the whole family!
The neighbors on the other side of our duplex were celebrating loudly the other day.
There wasn’t much going on in our house at the time, my mom was visiting for Thanksgiving and the kids were with their dad until the evening meal we were preparing.
My mom and I had been discussing her early suspicions of my ADHD diagnosis and how she went about researching such things before the age of the internet.
Because the neighbors were serving as a perfect example of something that wouldn’t get filtered out of the noticing of my super senses, she mentioned that she felt badly that I had to manage my life with such heightened sensitivity.
It struck me as a bit of a strange thing to feel badly about, to be honest.
However, the examples she gave of things that bother me usually involved her, the smell of something she was eating, that it wasn’t bothering her at all that the neighbors were being loud.
So it occurred to me that what she was really trying to get across was that my super sensitivities have been bothersome to her a lot of the time because it meant she needed to hear about them or try to accommodate for them while I was growing up.
But anyway… I digress from where I’m actually trying to go with this.
Back to the sensitivities.
The thing is that my sensitivities to sounds, smells, textures, tastes, emotions don’t actually bother me that much.
I don’t find it that difficult being a highly sensitive person.
But that wasn’t always the case.
They don’t bother me now because I’ve learned how to do life as a highly sensitive person in an insensitive world.
Part of that management came from a willingness to embrace the ways my sensitivities are my strength.
Because while aesthetics and environment can be a source of annoyance for me, my profound attunement to them also means I have an uncanny way of creating a beautiful, calming, enjoyable atmosphere because it’s what my system needs to thrive.
It’s a win-win because other people enjoy it too.
Even though my feelings tend to be bigger than other peoples, I also have an enormous amount of empathy.
I know how people feel because I feel it right alongside them.
This means I’m usually very conscientious about being generous and kind.
Though I get distracted easily by external stimuli, I’ve also come to learn how to harness my powers of hyperfocus using audio and the right atmosphere.
And I’ve committed myself to living a particular lifestyle that nurtures my highly sensitive nature and allows my boys who are also highly sensitive to thrive.
5 Lifestyle Practices for Highly Sensitive Families
Hygge
The difficult to define, Danish way of life, promoting comfort, warmth, relaxation and peace.
Rituals
Crafting meaning into daily routines to encourage connection and purpose.
Nature
Being in touch with the environment has a distinct ability to calm the mind.
Giving back
HSPs thrive on positivity and happiness of others.
Creating
Opportunity to express deeply felt emotions brings stress relief to an overactive mind.
These are the exact strategies I use in my coaching for highly sensitive families that allow them to experience fewer outbursts and meltdowns and cultivate a harmonious home environment filled with peace and authentic connection.
The best way to get started with these strategies is to download my Calm & Connected Family Mini Guide.
I’m a child of the 90’s so it’s no surprise that I’m going to wrap this post up with a reference to a Jewel song.
“It doesn’t take a talent to be mean. Your words can crush things that are unseen. So, please be careful with me. I’m sensitive and I’d like to stay that way.”
Those words resonated with me when I first heard the song, and resonate even more now raising kids, in an often scary world.
We’re sent messages that being successful in our culture requires a thick skin. The world is challenging, competitive, and loud.
Yet, there are so many out there who have achieved incredible success in life because of their sensitivity and not in spite of it.
The end of the song goes,
Maybe if we are surrounded by beauty, someday we will become what we see.
Anyone can start a conflict. It’s harder yet to disregard it.
I’d rather see the world from another angle.
We are every day angels.
Be careful with me ’cause I’d like to stay that way.
With the right intentions, keeping ourselves and our little ones sensitive will have meaningful, impactful benefits.