How to Feel Good About Everything

In this episode of The Stress Therapist, host Cheri Flake explores the powerful connection between our physical spaces and mental well-being. She reflects on how decluttering and creating joyful, intentional environments can uplift our mood and simplify emotional challenges. Through personal anecdotes, literary inspiration, and a guided meditation, Cheri shares practical ways to make your surroundings a sanctuary for peace and focus.

In this episode we will:

~Your Space Reflects Your Mind

A cluttered environment often mirrors internal chaos. Organizing and beautifying your surroundings can help bring clarity and calm to your mind.

~ Curate Joyful Items

Surround yourself with objects that spark happiness or have personal significance. Whether it’s a photo, a sentimental trinket, or something as simple as a colorful decoration, these small touches can create a positive emotional shift.

~ Visual Meditation

Meditation Music byhttp://sonicyogi.com

https://open.spotify.com/track/7lpLx4vtoQusvoqidRY6vN?si=0db8efd9082c40eb
https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qotx90teY3iZ00PgUCwty?si=44a1c18c52e24e1f

Listen to Sonic Yogi on:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2xJT8mRbrqa7rTY6d4y5Fq?si=q2YYpPSzQOmu4R8-W4jkpw
https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sonic-yogi/722350162
https://amazon.com/music/player/artists/B00FQMVVIC/sonic-yogi?marketplaceId=ATVPDKIKX0DER&musicTerritory=US&ref=dm_sh_Y5q68A8LSQQGzl01PQC7Uaw6c
https://youtu.be/p2jtMEkdh6g?si=rVq-Q8o85mI75S4_

INTERESTING MENTIONS:

Shantaram Inspiration:
The literary example of seeing everyday objects through the lens of admiration reminds listeners to appreciate the beauty in their surroundings.

https://www.heartwood-retreats.com : location for Cheri’s Georgia Mountain Retreats
https://www.jekyllisland.com: Location for Cheri’s seaside retreat

The Host for this podcast: Cheri Augustine Flake, LCSW The Stress Therapist and Author

Join Cheri Flake on her Next Meditation And Yoga Retreat

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or
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OR
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https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15903117.Cheri_Augustine_Flake

https://www.amazon.com/Honey-DONE-Productive-Household-Absolutely/dp/0997950919/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_bdcrb_top?ie=UTF8: Honey Do To Honey DONE! A Simple System For A Productive And Happy Household With Absolutely No More Nagging!

A word from your host, Cheri Flake, LCSW: Feeling good after our Stress Therapy session? Awesome. Check out the show notes to connect with me, The Stress Therapist on social media or go tohttp://www.ilovetherapy.com/ to find out about meditation classes & meditation and yoga retreats.TRANSCRIPT:

[00:00] The Stress Therapist: Hey, beautiful people. What's up? So there is just so much that's a drag, right? Like, ugh. I mean, I don't want to do this. I'm dreading that. What about this? Oh my gosh, the world, it's going to ****.[00:13] Help. What can we do? There is something that you can do and I'm going to talk about it today. So relax and settle in and listen up because your stress therapy session is about to begin.[00:24] Right.[00:39] Hey, beautiful people, it's time for some stress therapy. A podcast about how to meditate and get better at stress for people living in the real world. Finally a place to Park.[00:49] My 25 plus years of experience of working as a psychotherapist in the mental health field. And now your host, me, the stress therapist, Sherry Flake.[01:12] Hey, beautiful people. Okay, so we talk all the time about how to feel good, how to feel better, how to feel amazing, how to do all these things. And of course I'm always telling you to meditate because I think it's better for you than water people.[01:25] So good for you.[01:27] And of course you'll be feeling good if you do that, but sometimes it's just hard, you know what I mean? Like you're just feeling down, have the blahs, you know, there's so many things grabbing our attention, our focus, you know, everything's overwhelming, it's daunting.[01:42] You could be dreading things.[01:44] How can we feel good about our work? How can we feel good about our play? How can we feel good about just the day to day things? Cleaning the kitchen, making the bed, being around family members.[01:58] You know, that can get tough as everyone gets older and changes in their needs change and their moods change and their attitudes change about things. Feeling good about your relationships, your marriage, your friendships, your neighbors, how can you feel good about things?[02:15] Well, I'm always telling you, of course, to meditate, but also to keep an eye on what you're thinking about, right? And if you want to get knee deep into that, you can look at the podcast that I did, how I know the woo woo is true.[02:28] True. And yes, definitely you're going to feel better if you are monitoring your thoughts, if you're aware of what you're thinking, if you're changing the way you think about things.[02:37] However, here's a really easy way to change the way that you're feeling about things. Now, I'm going to use this as an example. A long time ago I was reading this book.[02:48] It's an excellent book. Now I did hear that it might be on, like, itunes or. It's not called itunes anymore. Sound like a boomer, right? It's called Apple tv. That's what it's called.[03:01] And there's. Think it's on there. Shanta Rum.[03:04] And it is based on a true story. It's an amazing story. It's an unbelievable book. I can't remember the name of the guy. Gregory something. I'll also put that in the show notes.[03:15] But this book is amazing. And he talks about his experiences of breaking out of a Turkish prison, you know, pretending to be a doctor, pretending to be a mafia guy.[03:24] I mean, like, this guy does amazing things. It's a great novel. It's a great story. However, there's a page in the book, and I think it's only one page that I read over and over and over again.[03:36] Now, in the book, what's happened is he's fallen in love with a friend, and she doesn't know that he loves her, and he doesn't know if she loves him. You know, right now, it's sort of, you know, unrequited love, right?[03:51] It's.[03:52] He's in love with her. He has not expressed these feelings to her.[03:56] So they're supposed to go to dinner or somewhere, and she says, listen, just go to my place. Let yourself in. Here's the key, and wait for me there. And so he goes over to her place, and he opens the door and walks in, and he describes walking around her place with such admiration and love.[04:17] And he's describing. Now he's doing this very beautifully and eloquently. It's lovely. He's an amazing writer. I am not giving. It just is here. But he's basically saying, here are the lucky things.[04:31] These beautiful material possessions, decorations, furniture that get to be near this woman that I love, you know. And so he's filled a little bit with, like, you know, I don't know, it even.[04:49] It even reads a little like envy. And it reads like, I mean, he's just walking around in absolute joy, being around the things that she has surrounded herself with. Now, I don't know about you, but I don't know if I thoughtfully have every single item in my life.[05:10] I don't know if I've thought it through about how much joy it brings me before I bring it into my life. But he is assuming that she has, like, you know, he's looking at the map that she's, you know, marked up with the places she's been and the books that she's blessed with her presence and hands and thoughts, conclusions and r