Open Challenge, The Happiness Advantage Starting April 1st

[The Albatross]

How I finished Day 2:

Exercise was a lot of walking about 2 miles. Some swelling in the knee but no limping today.

Meditation... procrastinated and got called into work. By the end of my shift, I was way way too tired so it was a "no go".
Have to do it in the morning after my husband leaves for work or it isn't going to happen I think.

Okay so 6 am and Day 3:

1. I am grateful that I picked up a short notice shift, extra money helps.

I am grateful that I got a compliment from our agency nurse, who covered a no show until I could get there and while there was doing a case review. She said she had no critique, just keep doing what I'm doing.

I am grateful that I have been able to take on male clients without moderate to severe stress or anxiety.


2. A positive experience I had in the last 24 hours: Had to run an errand and at the store a man opened the door for me on the way in and another one did on the way out. It made me feel "visible" (hard to explain).

3. Exercise: blank til I update

4. Meditation: blank til I update

5. Random act of kindness: I brought my client a piece of red velvet cake, cutting it in half so he could enjoy it for a snack and then surprised him with a second piece for dessert.

 

[ms spock]

1. Write down three new things you are grateful for each day.
2. Journal about a positive experience experience in the last 24 hours.
3. Exercise
4. Meditation
5. A random act of kindness.

1. I am grateful that I was so brave and went and got the mammogram, the breast ultra sound, the ovarian cancer ultra sounds. It was tough going. Next year I might divide them up into two days.

I am grateful that I was able to do self care today and take the day off.

I am grateful that I am able to go to bellydancing tonight.

2. I was able to reach out for connection this morning. I was able to text B and tell him I was so stressed about the tests and that contact was nice.

3. I went bellydancing for exercise. I also did some yoga poses today.

4. I did do some meditation and I went to a deep place in myself. I also did fall asleep, (like Alba) a few times.

5. I talked to an upset woman and soothed her. I got someone some water when they were thirsty. I sent a text to someone who likes contact via text.

I am really struggling at the moment. I only come online to report in for the 21 Day Challenge.

 

[anni]

OHhhhhhhh, I see! Well now d*mmit, you could have told me before I got rid of the things, now I have to go work my way through a few boxes of Oreos, earn them back again, geesh! Work, work, work, work, it's all I ever do these days, gosh! Oh, low on milk, need some.

Angel Wing Sprouts, wish I'd known that in 5th grade, Mrs. E, had full grown plants in that case, you'd get windburn when he wrote on the blackboard. As a child, kind of thing you go ask your mother about and she yells at you for being rude but you weren't trying to be, you genuinely wished to know. Mrs. E, one scary angel.

Already have a Kind act, which is every day. I go warm up my husband's car, turn on the seat warmers for him before he leaves for work, and I always fill his travel cup, too. It's a cold walk to the car out here in the woods, just seems to me maybe it would be nice to get into a cozy car. This might be cheating since it's daily in cold weather, so I'll be back later when there's another one to log, plus the rest of the Challenge day.

I am grateful for being able to recognize gifts when I see them.

 

[Eleanor]

I am grateful for Noorah.
I am grateful for the dog kennel our neighbor gave us.
I am grateful for good earth tea and Tamiee Webb.

and may I say OMG do my abs HURT today. Did my exercise, but took it easy.
Did my meditation.
Did a couple of yoga poses with the lady on tv and L! (bonus points!)

My positive thing for yesterday was actually getting some papers graded and commented on - relatively painlessly...
Let my kitty sleep on my lap an extra 20 minutes last night - he looked so happy to be there - even though I was ready to go to bed.

Kind thing... looking for an opportunity today...

Hang in there Ms.Spock!

 

[Eleanor]

I go warm up my husband's car, turn on the seat warmers for him before he leaves for work,

People like this SO much, anni, that our two (new!) cars both have apps that will do it! Nothing warm in the cupholder yet tho... Hmmm How hard could it be? :D

 

[The Albatross]

Update Day 3, Item 4 (meditation component):

Had a breakthrough on the meditation component. I poured a hot bath, and did the meditation while floating. I found the experience of the water, and the tactile feeling of floating and my body rising and falling with the breathing a positive experience. The 5 minutes went by very fast it seemed. I think having my ears underwater helped too because it amplified my body sounds and breath sounds.

Excercise it the last component for today.

 

[Changing4Best]

Sorry I didn't check in yesterday, but I did complete everything, as long as one and all can accept succeeding at not having played any April Fools jokes on anyone as an act of kindness. Well, the way I look at this is that the success falls squarely on Apr. 2nd at exactly 12:00 Midnight plus one second. The temptation to have played such jokes is over then and it can be considered a success at that moment. So I take that as that.

Other things I did yesterday were to take my dog and go with my walking friend on the nature trail here in town. We walked a mile or so. (We plan to do the same again today). My things I was grateful for yesterday were: That is wasn't raining and I could walk to the dentist 2. The birds always singing as the sun starts to rise every morning and 3. My recliner/ rocker. My positive experience yesterday was that a friend agreed to take me shopping, even though my usual ride to the store fizzled out. My meditation and prayer were most strongly done during my dentist visit, and lo! And behold, there was NO PAIN during the drilling.

Today I also did my 5 things, the most marked one being that I had been burdened to call a friend of mine from 3 states away for a few days now. So I called her as my act of kindness, only to find out that she was in the hospital and sure was glad to hear from me! I let her talk to me as long as she wanted to, deciding that, that would be best. When she'd had a good talk and told it all to me (she'd had internal bleeding and was in the ICU even for awhile) she let me go. It was a good talk and we both shared a lot of things. I had not talked with her for maybe 2 months, so I am so glad I called when she needed me.

I still have more exercise to do today, going for a walk with my friend and neighbor Dot later (when she gets off work), but since I did do my weight lifting already, I feel I completed everything for the day. The walk will just be extra. Oh! And my things I was grateful for today were: 1. Babygirl, my PTSD Service Dog. 2. Fruit, especially strawberries. 3. Livning in the USA where we have religious freedom to read Bibles, worship God, pray and in general be and do what we should for Him and our fellow man.

 

[Eleanor]

Told a stranger that her sneaker was untied. Five for five!

 

[GreenFrog2]

Ok, day 3 *sigh* I got home late last night and did not turn on the computer as I find it has a negative affect on my sleep so I have left my entry until today. So yesterday was a pretty good day:

I was grateful for:
1. being about to message a friend as a part of an ongoing conversation that we have - give and take of support and some laughs which is really nice
2. being able to sit and read quietly during my breaks.
3. Having a day where my stress levels weren't to bad - it was really pleasing for me to be able to regularly moniter this and just do breathing to keep myself on track.

Journal - I did not write it down as I was travelling, but I kept doing self talk about how well I was doing and how nice it was to be feeling so balanced. (I think I knew that once I got home I would just crash! so did lots of positive self talk during the day).

Exercise - walk and short cycle.

Meditation - lots of breathing meditation throughout the day.

Act of kindness - chatted with people at work-site I visited that I don't really like because I know that they wanted to do this. (Normally I don;t let chats start with these people, no matter how hard they try to get conversations going - think they are really bored, lonely and stressed! (which is not my responsibility)).

 

[The Albatross]

Exercise today was walking a half mile (knee is still swollen again).

 

[ms spock]

1. I am grateful that I felt feelings today and cried, that then alleviated the anxiety and panic.

I am grateful that I have the gift of reading that sustains me.

I am grateful that I can see my improvements - used to feel the nausea, anxiety and panic all the time. This has shifted significantly.

2. Journal about a positive experience experience in the last 24 hours.

I have managed to get through the day. That doesn't sound like a lot but it is huge for me today. I am just struggling at times. I napped, slept, felt angry about what the hell I have been doing with my life, watched dvds, meditated on and off, had some baths, cried after I went to the library, got a few items of shopping and dropped into to the art exhibition opening. I was pretty out of it most of the day.

3. My Exercise today is rather limited. I did some yoga poses.

4. I did some meditation. I used positive affirmations on myself.

5. I gave some support by turning up to the exhibition opening. I also gave some positive feedback and support to a fellow artist.

I am really struggling so that is what I managed with the 21 Day Challenge today. There was a time when feeling this bad would have meant I was totally incapacitated. But I am still able to do the 21 Day Challenge. Not as well as I would like, but I am still doing it.

 

[anni]

Yes, It's tough for me to turn on the computer at night also, even with the best intentions. I just don't feel very good at night, better to not give in to that and be tempted to blah blah blah about it.

Shuffled my 3 miles yesterday, forcing yourself to empy your mind of everything allows the surroundings in, the creek, the birds, your breathing, your footsteps, the rythym. It just works, then you can pray, too, since it's all one step away from being connected.

Took Mom to her cardio appt, yesterday, taking her for bloodwork today, not sure how much of an act of kindness this would be since it seems a little self-serving to me. I just cherish having her here. I also am going with hubby to have his nerves scraped out of a facet joint, then have to go collect daughter's meds to drop off at her boyfriend's house, then bake a birthday cake for the housekeeper's grandaughter. I found out the daughter spent 500 bucks on a birthday cake for that kid last year, she's a checkout girl at Walmart. I said um if I made you guys a nice cake, would she please not spend 500 clams on a cake for a child who is too young to know she's even eating cake? Again, this may not count as kindness and be self-serving since it will keep me from having an aneurism.

I'm grateful my 4 kids were all here for Easter.
Grateful Mom's still here, and we share a secret as to why. Pretty funny, too.
Grateful we didn't get pulled over yesterday. Mom's car is out of inspection, I only just noticed it on the way home. I'm getting a little too old for the cute blond chick thing to work on policemen any more,rats, better just go get the thing inspected. And yes, yes it used to, before anyone asks. Hey, better than paying a gazillion bucks and your eldest son for speeding tickets.

Journal, hmmm. This is as far as I get with that, although will try harder. Time is a terrible constraint, and by nighttime it's not a good idea.