The Tranquil Vintessa

During a quiet moment, I sit and try to embrace the tranquility of the morning. However, my mind has other plans, drifting from endless rambles to deep interpersonal questions. While my mind is ready for a full discussion, I am not. I don’t want to think like a philosopher; I simply want to enjoy my coffee in peace. It can be hard to shut out the clatter and embrace the quiet. When my mind races, I have a few techniques to quiet it down and enjoy my coffee in peace, and I want to share them with you.

Firstly, I name that troublesome part of my brain. According to Dr. Adam Borland, “By personifying the disorder, we can create a bit of distance and recognize that it doesn’t define who we are.” I named the chatty, overthinking part of my brain Linda (although it often changes), and Linda likes to talk all the time. By giving this part of my brain a personality and separating it from my own, I can easily tell her to ‘Shut up and calm down’ when she gets a little out of control.

If telling her to shut up doesn’t work, I bring my mind back to the present moment by immersing myself in my senses. I focus on the smell of the coffee brewing, how steam dances in the air, the sound of the metal spoon as it stirs the coffee, and how the cup warms my hands before I take a sip. This often calms “Linda” down, and she sits with me so we can enjoy the morning together.

Sometimes my brain likes a discussion, and when my mind goes off on a rant or spirals into a tangent, I have to recognize it as soon as it happens. I promptly tell my mind it’s talking to itself and to stop. Usually, this snaps my brain right out of whatever it was discussing and back into reality.

As I finally calm Linda, aka my brain, down and my coffee finishes brewing, I pour myself a fresh cup and take a deep breath, breathing in tranquility and releasing tension. I listen to the song of the morning—the birds chirping and the squirrels rustling through the fallen leaves—and I feel like I can finally breathe.