How I Gave Myself an Inner Make-Over

I gave myself an inner make-over, and I've never felt better.

The past year has been a real learning experience for me. I've really learned a lot about who I am, and who I want to be. I feel like I have been given a fresh start. Here is a look at what I did to help myself.

1. I stopped letting things bother me.
2. I got rid of negative energy- mentally.
3. I got rid of negative energy- physically.
4. I became a vegetarian and implemented organics and soy into my diet.
5. I showed gratitude to those in my past.

Not Letting Things Bother Me

"It is what it is."

That quote right there can take care of anything, period. I decided not to wallow in things anymore. I decided that if something cannot be changed then it is not worth wasting energy on. If I were to get spoken to at work about something that I did wrong (or didn't do wrong), I used to feel like crap and let it get me down. If my fiancé got on my tail about something around the house, I used to get upset. If I missed a bill, got a ticket or something else negative happened, I used to focus on that. Now, I simply don't I adopted the Buddhist mentality that "it is what it is." Those five words have helped me tremendously in life as of late. Getting angry or sad will not change a thing. I've realized that. I just move on.

Getting Rid of Negative Energy Mentally
Naysayers are the worst possible people to be around. I had a job that I enjoyed. But I did not enjoy the limitations my superiors put on my creativity. I did not like that there was no room for growth. I did not appreciate that they did not appreciate all I had to offer. I can't explain it, but being in that corporate environment really brought me down.

When I found out The Man (as I collectively call corporate America) was not going to approve the last day of my one-week vacation due to a mandatory training session, I gave my two week's notice. This was because it was not for a vacation, but for an eight-day creative writing residency-the first for my MA in creative writing. For cripe's sake- I worked for a school and they didn't want me to go to school?

After I quit that job, I immediately found a new job for a better company-one of the top places to work in Pennsylvania. I was surrounded by creative people in a creative environment in my new job, and was able to spend eight days with other creative people. Getting rid of that negative mental energy allowed me to refocus on what is important in my life, without naysayers. It was the best thing I ever did for myself!

There are also a few people that I hang out with from time to time that don't appreciate my talents. I will no longer talk about my ideas and goals with them, and just simply hang out and talk about the mundane. I don't want to create negativity in the air.

Getting Rid of Negative Energy Physically
Clutter. A cluttered house clutters the mind. It took me a long time to realize this. I went through and cleaned out everything. I threw away so much stuff. I always found it hard to let go. When I finally let go of my past and focused on the future, I found that I grew happier and more productive. So, why did I cling to say many things? I have boxes and bags and more boxes and more bags filled with things from grade school on up to college. I'm 29. I don't need these things anymore. When my closets were cleaned out, I felt better. I felt like a burden was off my back.

Getting rid of negative physical energy went a step further when I demanded we get rid of my bedroom set. I always had problems sleeping and waking. But ever since I moved in with Dave and we shared my bed, it's gotten extremely worse. Let me go back a second and say that this bedroom set, headboard and all belonged to my mom and step-dad. He was very abusive toward my mother and verbally abusive toward me. He was just a mean, mean man.

It hit me last month. It was this headboard that I shared with my relationship that was causing me to have nightmares and restless sleep. We got rid of that, the other matching furniture and burned it. I feel so much better. And, I sleep so much better. There were so many bad memories and so many bad visions of my mom's relationship and my own relationship with my step-father associated with that bed, that it got into my head. I am sure if I saw a shrink about that, they would have agreed.

Eating Better
I became a vegetarian. And, I am trying to eat as natural as I can. I just met someone who does not eat anything processed. I want to be like that one day, but I still eat too much on the run or in little time at home that I still succumb to the processed world.

But, since I have taken meat out of my diet and added a lot of soy and organics to my personal menu, I feel better and healthier on the inside. I feel like I have more energy. I feel like my body is thanking me.

Showing Gratitude
After watching The Secret (which is really what caused me to look at everything in my life) I realized that I had a lot of people to thank in my life. I made a list of people who've done kind things fore me throughout my life. I wrote up drafts of letters to them on my computer. I just bought some nice stationery and am going to handwrite the letters and mail them shortly. Showing gratitude for others, says The Secret allows you to be able to move forward. It's the first step toward getting rewards of your own.

So, in five ways, I gave myself an inner makeover. I feel healthier in the body and mind. I want to implement exercise and meditation as two final steps.