Sunday, February 8, 2015

Why Practice Introspection?



This time last year, I was unaware of the term introspection, what it means to be introspective or how it could benefit my life. It wasn't until I had help seeking methods of coping with anxiety that I was enlightened to a new way of understanding myself (or at least the practice of understanding what makes me me). Writing this out, it sounds narcissistic to ponder what makes up my personality, but introspection when practiced correctly is not narcissistic-- it's liberating.

Anxiety can be brought on by triggers. They are different from one individual to the next. Even though I have experienced anxiety since childhood, my triggers remain unknown. Introspection, I was told, can be used as a tool to identify them. This made sense to me, because knowing myself would include knowing what caused me to become anxious--and more importantly-- knowing the behavioral patterns that led to my panic or anxiety attack. 

I am aware not everyone is as neurotic as I am, which is why I'm going to point out other benefits introspection can provide. Raising awareness to introspection as a tool in everyday life can't be successful on my part if I can't emphasize the importance of introspection to others like and unlike myself and what can be gained from it.

So, what can everyone achieve through introspection?

1. Become definite in your own morals, values and ideas.
2. Pinpoint how your emotions fuel your actions and reactions.
3. Learn to shut down negative thoughts before they grow into self-destructive thought patterns.
4. Heighten sensory awareness (learn to view the world as it is instead of withdrawing into selfish tunnel vision due to constantly over-thinking).
5. Achieve a sense of peace with who you are (flaws included), because you understand why you do the things that you do.
6. Induce self-preservation (for the sensitive soul).
7. Heal old wounds that have played a repetitive role in your relationships.
8. Strengthen your ability to meditate, which can diffuse anger and enhance focus.
9. Harness the capability to be alone with your thoughts and not become bored or easily discouraged.
10. Build confidence resulting in refined communication with those around you.


I will not lie to you, introspection takes practice and can feel awkward at first. We are asked to look deeper into ourselves in hopes of possibly uncovering a new truth that adds to the complexity of us as human beings. This may seem intimidating, and I am here to vouch that introspection is the farthest thing from that. With all the benefits you could gain, (that I have only begun to touch upon) isn't it time you gave it a try? 

9 comments:

  1. Great post Keri! As a fellow anxiety suffer I really enjoyed reading. Thank you for providing a list of tips on achieving introspection, I will definitely be referencing it in the future. I look forward to your future entries.

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  2. Very well written! Anxiety is something that effects many people so it is important to understand those triggers so that you can help others. Great job!

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  3. I like how you are helping the reader by sharing how you deal with the problems in your life. This is some excellent information and I like how you structured it into a list for the readers benefit. Maybe you could share some links at the end in case the reader is interested in finding more information.

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  4. As a Psych Major, I got to say I love this post. Knowing oneself is very important.

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  5. Well said. I especially like #9. I agree there is comfort in being alone in your thoughts. A heightened awareness of self can certainly gratify the senses, and I'm sure being at ease with who you are can alleviate much anxiety. Unfortunately, at least some anxiety is one of life's necessary evils and the ability to regulate it is both a skill and a necessity. As the saying goes, "stars can't shine without darkness"!

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  6. "If you don't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?" -RUPaul

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  7. I love the list; makes it sound like there's a few things I could definitely gain from introspection!

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  8. I really liked this post! As someone who also suffers from anxiety it was really nice to read how someone is taking control of their life. I personally really like #3, 5,7, and 10. Those are all things that I'm currently trying to work on and seeing them written down is encouraging, knowing that they do indeed help!

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