Over the past decade of my healing journey, I’ve noticed a pattern in myself — a pattern I now understand with tenderness instead of frustration. Whenever I sit down to write, answer journaling prompts, edit videos, work on my website, or dive into the endless courses I’ve taken… my body often slips into distraction mode before I even realize what’s happening.
Instead of sitting still and doing the inner work, I’ve suddenly found myself:
✂️ cutting my hair
🧪 mixing homemade face serums
🥣 eating a big bowl of steel-cut oats shortly after I had a blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, kale protein smoothie.
And 🏋🏽♀️ doing random sets of shoulder presses after I already went to the gym. 🤔
None of it is wrong — but none of it is what I actually sat down to do.
Recently, I started creating a warm-up ritual to ease myself into slowing down. Not forcing myself into stillness, but guiding my nervous system toward it.
So instead of forcing discipline, I cracked a window for fresh air, lit a candle, put on soothing sound healing music, and burned some Frankincense and Myrrh incense. These scents calm me instantly. Within minutes, something softened inside me. My body settled. My breath deepened. And finally, I was able to sit, be present, and write — not from pressure, but from presence.
This is the truth:
Catching myself in distraction mode is actually part of the healing.
Because the moment we recognize it, we have the power to choose differently.
Distraction isn’t failure — it’s a signal.
A sign the body feels overwhelmed.
A sign something vulnerable is about to rise.
A sign we need gentleness, not force.
Every time I choose presence over distraction, I’m carving a new pathway — a future version of me who feels safe slowing down, safe being still, and safe doing the inner work.
Below is a Craving-Detour Script you can use anytime you feel yourself drifting toward distraction — whether that’s food, scrolling, shopping, or doing “productive things” that keep you from the deeper work your soul wants you to touch.
Craving–Detour Script
Use this the moment you feel the urge to eat, scroll, shop, or distract instead of journal.
Step 1 — Pause for 5 seconds
Hand on heart. Deep exhale.
Step 2 — Ask the real question:
“What am I hungry for right now —
→ comfort
→ clarity
→ connection
→ or escape?”
Step 3 — Speak to the craving without shame
Say quietly or internally:
“Body, I know you’re trying to protect me.
We don’t need to numb anything.
I’m just going to check in with myself for 3 minutes.”
Step 4 — Offer a safer substitute
Choose one of these instead:
• 10 deep exhales
• 1 page of journaling
• 1 minute of rocking your body gently
• stepping outside for 30 seconds
• drinking warm tea
• placing a hand on your sternum and humming
Your craving will shift in about 90 seconds — because that’s how long an urge cycle lasts in the nervous system.
Step 5 — If you still want food (or any distraction)
Eat or act mindfully, not reactively.
Choose something nourishing.
Be aware of what you are truly craving emotionally.
Sometimes the foods we reach for are tied to childhood moments where sugar, fast food, or treats were given in place of:
• love
• comfort
• connection
• validation
• safety
If we were given sugar instead of a hug, our body remembers that.
We grow up needing comfort — but the body only knows the substitute.
At some point, we can create a plot twist.
Say to yourself:
“If I’m eating, I’m staying with myself.”
This prevents dissociation-based eating (or dissociation-based anything).
Healing doesn’t happen through force — it happens through awareness, gentleness, and small shifts that your body feels safe enough to follow.
If you find yourself drifting into distraction, don’t shame yourself.
Just notice it.
Redirect softly.
Begin again.
Each time you choose presence — even for 30 seconds — you’re rewriting your story.
With love & compassion,
DinaValerie
