When was the last time you compared yourself to someone else?
Earlier today? A few times yesterday?
Would you say you’re a chronic “comparer” (if there is such a word)? In other words, are you prone to compare yourself to others fairly frequently?
How does that make you feel? Most of the time, it made you feel terrible about yourself.
“Comparison is the thief of Joy”
Every time you compare yourself to someone else, or to an unrealistic standard there can be no good outcome. Even if you are better than someone else, what does that do for you in the long run? Because you will eventually find someone who is still better than you if you look long enough. It will never end well.
There are many reasons why comparisons are bad for you.
Erosion of Self-Esteem: Constantly measuring yourself against others can lead to feelings of inadequacy or low self-worth, especially if you perceive you are lacking in some way compared to others.
Unrealistic Standards: People often compare themselves to idealized versions of others, particularly on social media, where people tend to share only their successes and highlights. This can create unrealistic standards that are difficult or impossible to meet.
Increased Anxiety and Stress: Worrying about how you measure up to others can lead to increased anxiety and stress, as the pressure to meet or exceed others’ achievements can be overwhelming.
Loss of Authenticity: When you focus too much on how you compare to others, you might lose sight of your values, goals, and strengths, leading you to pursue paths that are not genuinely aligned with who you are.
Hindered Personal Growth: Instead of focusing on personal progress and self-improvement, constant comparison can distract you from setting and achieving your goals, as you become more concerned with keeping up with others.
Negative Emotions: Comparison can breed negative emotions such as jealousy, resentment, and bitterness, which can damage relationships and lead to a negative outlook on life.
Decreased Satisfaction and Happiness: Continually comparing oneself to others can lead to chronic dissatisfaction, as there will always be someone who appears to have more or be doing better, making it difficult to appreciate your own achievements and circumstances.
Now that you know all the damaging effects comparisons can have on you, what can you do to stop and how does sound healing & meditation help?
- Start with Self-Love frequencies – acceptance of yourself starts with loving yourself just as you are and the journey you are on. Use one of several sound baths using frequencies of self-love: https://aurras.com/video/heart-chakra-frequency-sound-bath/
- Find patience – the lack of patience for whatever it is you are comparing is often a result of impatience which is an extension of anxiety and stress in the body. Use one of several stress and anxiety-reducing sound baths to restore patience:https://aurras.com/video/grounding-frequency-meditation-connect-to-the-earth/
- Meditate on releasing comparisons – As you are using either of the above sound bath’s use the following visualizations in your meditation to help you release the burden you carry around comparison:
- Visualize yourself in a serene space of nature
- You are holding balloons that represent the comparisons you make. One at a time, release a balloon and allow it to float away into the universe and recognize you don’t need it. Continue releasing balloons until all of them are gone.
- Breathe and enjoy your nature space.
- Breathe into your lower sacrum, hips, legs, and feet, pushing out any remaining tension or anxiety you are holding on to that may cause you to make comparisons. Allow that energy to flow into the earth.
- Breathe and honor your unique journey. Recognizing only, you can be on this journey just as everyone must be on theirs.
- To stop yourself from comparing yourself to others or unrealistic standards, notice when you do and make a note of it. Use this as the beginning of a reset plan where you perhaps go get information such as indicators of where you were where you started and make realistic goals based on what you know about yourself. Or to seek a mentor to help you define some good goals. From there, notice when you compare, stop, and refocus on your goals and the progress you have made.
Comparisons are useful at points because it does help us understand certain things about ourselves such as if we are on pace with things such as learning or development. However, it is also a slippery slope and too easy to get caught up in comparisons to the point of it becoming demoralizing and unproductive. That’s where we can reach for sound healing and meditation to bring us back to a help level of inner peach and self-acceptance.
