Are You Long Overdue for a Good Scream? • Part IV

The “O” in proCrastination stands for outcry.

When was the last time you had a good outcry?

When you were a baby, you cried out for hours at a time. This crying helped you get your needs met.

Once the crying stopped, because you developed language and understanding, and the people around you told you to stop crying, it’s likely you didn’t find healthy new ways to meet your needs. Our society doesn’t teach this. It teaches the stop crying part, but not the "here’s what you can do instead to remain healthy" part.

So you likely picked up whatever tactics you could as a toddler to get your needs met without crying. And as smart as you were back then, your temporary solution likely wasn’t the best one for your whole life ahead.

You need help with things. Whether it's cleaning up clutter, moving through your taxes, or prioritizing your health. Some days the piles and stacks of things on your ‘to do’ list can feel unbearable. Crying out is a way to get help.

If you haven’t yet learned the best tactics for how to ask for help, how to receive help, and how to get your emotional needs met when you feel overwhelmed, then start with an outcry. To yourself. As a way to signal that you do need help. Otherwise you live with the gnawing feeling of needing help but silencing your request for it.

It can be hard to turn to someone and say, "Could you please help me?" Especially if you see yourself as well put-together. But there are days when you need help too, no matter how put-together you are.

Start today with an outcry to release the tension of silencing your cry all these years.

If you feel silly doing this in the vicinity of others, get into a car, keep the windows closed, and give a yell or two.

See what it feels like to no longer silence your cry for help.

Come to terms with who you are and what you need.