Digesting Life: Self-Talk, Awareness & Celebrating Ourselves
Have you checked in with your mind lately? 👀
We have around 60,000 thoughts daily, and 80% are repetitive and negative if left unchecked.
Movement, journaling, and meditation can be daily opportunities to check in and digest these thoughts, turning repetitive negativity into growth and self-awareness.
🌻What have you accomplished lately that you’re proud of?
On Monday I taught an online yoga class to celebrate the upcoming Sagittarius Full Moon where I invited participants to pause and appreciate recent wins, no matter how small they may seem.
“What is something you accomplished lately that you’re proud of?”I asked. “Reflect on how you overcame the challenges that arose along the way & how you celebrated yourself”.
After class, one of my youngest students asked: “Laia, what have you accomplished lately that you’re proud of?”
She disarmed me. I searched in my brain for a quick answer.
“Absolutely nothing,” I thought.
Wow, wow, wow. Pause.
I took a breath and thanked my student for the inquiry, letting her know I needed a moment to reflect.
How long had it been since I had truly celebrated myself and my work, and more importantly, how long had I been engaging in such negative inner dialogue?
I grew up in a family where achievements were rarely celebrated. Small wins were ignored, and big ones were, in hindsight, undervalued, which affected how I lived and digested my achievements and experiences.
It has taken time to reparent myself to believe that I can be anything other than mediocre, and some days it is still hard.
🔥Your Digestive Fire
In Ayurveda, the sister science of Yoga, the concept of Agni, or digestive fire, is central to our health.
Agni is responsible for digesting not only the food we eat but also our thoughts, emotions, and experiences: helping you discern between what matters and what to burn away and release.
Understanding this has been crucial in overcoming Imposter Syndrome and shitty mental chatter, but they can still sneak up on me, especially during times when life is ebbing more than it is flowing.
“You’ll never finish the novel” has been one of the most recurring negative thoughts.
1,000 people can live through the exact same event, yet their experiences will be completely different.
For example, if we both worked at the same company and got laid off, our reactions could be very different. I might see it as a tragedy, while you might see it as a chance to start your own business, it all depends on your perspective.
When your Agni is strong and balanced, you can digest your life effectively, with clarity, vitality, and a sense of self-worth even when challenges arise.
Conversely, when your Agni is weak or imbalanced, it can lead to poor digestion, both physically and mentally, resulting in negative self-talk, low self-esteem, and a sense of doom.
As a person living with Crohn’s Disease, this resonates deeply. By learning to listen to my gut, both literally and figuratively, I've found it easier to maintain a positive attitude and better manage life's ups and downs, especially with my illness.
So, how do we shift when our minds are stuck in a negative loop, making us feel like utter rubbish?
How do we cultivate and maintain a strong Digestive Fire?
I’d love to tell you that as soon as I see myself falling into the abyss I have an infallible technique to pull me right back out, but in truth, I have learned that it is a combination of tools.
✨ Affirmations, Gratitude, & Visualization✨
Although these can make my inner critic roll her eyes, practicing positive affirmations, making time for gratitude, and visualizing my goals can help replace some of the negative chatter in my mind.
Try:
Repeating or writing down a simple positive affirmation: I am enough, I am doing the best I can. Or listen to this song. If you can tell yourself how much you suck at this or that, you can also tell yourself how great you are. Period.
Journal or reflect on a recent achievement (big or small) and how you overcame the challenges. Connect to a sense of gratitude for how far you’ve come.
Visualize or draw an intention or goal and commit to one small step you can take today.
These practices can help you realign and cultivate a positive mindset.
Every thought we think is creating our future. Affirmations are like planting seeds in the ground. First, they germinate, then they sprout, and then they shoot up through the soil. Louise Hay
✨ Movement & Breath For Digestive Health✨
Some yoga poses and breathwork techniques aid in the physical digestion of food and can also help you stroke your Agni. 🔥
When you’re feeling stuck physically, mentally, or energetically, movement is key to regaining a sense of self and reconnecting to the goodness in your life.
On World IBD Day, I taught a yoga class designed to do just that. Practice with me:
This gentle yoga practice encourages you to slow down, reflect, and find clarity in your thoughts and emotions, reconnecting with your inner fire.
Following yesterday’s after-class epiphany I’ve decided two three things:
I am proud of myself for continuing to show up in my life even though I have been feeling like crawling into a hole and returning in 2025.
I commit to intentionally shift my inner dialogue again, to return to kindness and compassion toward myself, because… I am enough, and I am doing the best I can. (see what I did there? 😁)
I will finish the last 5 chapters of my novel this month not because I have to, but because I know it is a story that needs to be told.
So, let me ask again:
What have you accomplished lately that you’re proud of?
Take a moment to reflect and share your achievements in the comments below. This is no place to be humble... Let's celebrate our wins together!
Remember, how you talk to yourself affects everything, both internally and externally, so until we meet again, pause often, breathe deeply, and stay kind - especially to yourself.
Take care, my friend!
Laia 💛
Wow! I didn’t know anything about Agni. It makes so much sense. Thank you for your insightful and beautiful post. I’m definitely going to check in with myself more over the next week and see how I feel and adapt. Can’t wait to read your next post!
Loved this so much! + my biggest accomplishment as of late is being open and honest about my eating and allergy journey/ problems. I started with telling people close to me then wrote about it and shared it with strangers and internet friends. It felt Really Big.