“A tree with strong roots can withstand the most violent storm, but the tree cannot grow roots just as the storm appears on the horizon.” – Dalai Lama XIV
Here at The Willow Center, we talk about our “roots” a lot. Roots are the foundation of who we are as people, and of how we interact with the world around us. Many of our roots were first grown in childhood; however, many more still are grown throughout adulthood.
Roots are our daily habits and rituals, our friendships and family supports, and how we spend our money and our time. Roots are how we work on ourselves, or the lack thereof. Having healthy roots takes great attention and intention each day.
The quote from Dalai Lama XIV above reflects two important facts of life: 1) The strength of your roots determines your resilience level, and 2) Storms are inevitable but unpredictable. Many of us have a bad habit of waiting around until the moment we feel threatened or challenged to start checking our roots. For some of us, this is too late and the storm blows us over.
It doesn’t have to be that way. Building healthier roots has much more to do with preventive planning than it does with simply reacting to hardship. For example, why do we often wait until we feel deeply depressed or anxious to the point of illness before we start talking to a therapist about it? A better approach would be talking to a therapist today, even when we’re feeling fine, to learn the self-care strategies and thought exercises we need to withstand the next storm.
The thing about mental health issues like depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress is that they do not wait until you are ready to handle them. There may be some warning signs, but they often just happen! Similarly, addiction related issues such as alcohol or drug use do not discriminate on who they affect. It can happen to any of us. Why not prepare ourselves ahead of time as best we can?
Check your roots this week. Perhaps you’ll find an area or two that could use some preventative attention. The Willow Center team is here to support you in building healthier roots – give us a call today.
Written by Chase Cotten, Operations Director.
Reviewed by Ashley English, LAC.
