Welcome to NOvember - Positive Thinking Month

As we enter the penultimate month of the year and the darker weather closes in, it's hard to keep up the motivation we have in abundance at the beginning of each year. When we know that Spring is on the way and the lighter evenings are approaching, there's a sense of positivity in the air and we feel enthused about the new beginnings on the horizon.

I find that it's easy to fall into the rut of giving up on healthy eating and exercising when the festive season approaches as we know there's a chance to wipe the slate clean come 1st January. The same applies for positive thinking. So, this month I'm setting myself the challenge of saying no to my usual end of year rut, and no to the voice in my head that wants me to give in to negative thoughts and feel as dull as the weather.

This NOvember, I'll be putting my energy into saying no to the following:
- No negative thoughts
- No feelings of despair
- No giving up
- No losing hope
- No procrastinating
- No surrounding yourself with people that drain your energy

I know that for my wellbeing, and to help keep my symptoms of endometriosis at bay (pains and tiredness which lead to anxiety and low moods), I need to keep going with the positivity I have been ramping up in the last few months. Starting a meditation class and reading about the way our minds work has massively helped my new found positivity and outlook. It has also changed the way I treat myself and endometriosis, as well as the way I react it to it emotionally. I will elaborate on this in the coming weeks.

For now, think about how you can succeed in having a positive November, even if you've had some bad news regarding your endometriosis or if your symptoms feel like they are worsening. We have to live in this body along with our disease so we need to realise the effect that feelings of sadness and despair have on the disease as well as the rest of our bodies.

Make a list of your blessings and remind yourself of these every time you fall off the positive track and spiral into negative thinking. You'll be surprised at how it can calm you down. I used to suffer badly from downward spirals into negative thoughts about my endometriosis, and some days still do, but now I recognise the bad thoughts and know to bring myself back to the positive side.

Finally, just remember to breathe. because at the end of the day you are alive - the greatest blessing of all - and there's no better thing to remind you of this than your breath.

- A.T.