Life is full of discomfort. Naturally, we try to avoid and limit uncomfortable situations. However, I would argue that experiencing discomfort is really an opportunity to lean in and experience transformational growth.   Growing through discomfort involves: Awareness of the discomfort Sitting with your feelings Creating habits to serve us Understanding that you’re the most important person in the room Making yourself a priority Committing to an 18-month nutrition plan   Growth Begins with Awareness The first thing to do when leaning into discomfort is to become aware that we are uncomfortable in the first place. Asking why you are uncomfortable will likely answer some other questions you may have been avoiding. Just becoming aware of uncomfortable emotions will decrease their intensity. Then, sitting with those feelings for a bit will decrease them even more. When this becomes a practice, you’ll become really effective at processing emotion.   Examine Your Habits Examining your habits is also key. Ultimately, we take on a habit because it relieves something and feels good. This all gets back to leaning in. With habits, if we’re leaning in, we can become more aware and create habits that will serve us. If we give ourselves compassion and examine why our habits exist, we can understand and make progress in creating habits that better serve our goals.   You Are The Most Important Person in the Room The next thing to do will likely make you super uncomfortable. I want you to realize that you are the most important person in the room. This isn’t meant to devalue other people. Rather, it means that you are becoming aware and showing up as the best possible version of yourself. If everyone believed this - that their life experience and existence started with them - other people would feed off that energy and own that too. Just imagine the amount of drama that we can get rid of and just show up authentically, ready to serve ourselves and others. What discomforts have you leaned into lately? Leave a comment on the episode page!   In This Episode  It starts with awareness [3:00] Building habits that will serve our goals [10:05]  Realizing and accepting your own importance [17:25] Why an 18-month nutrition plan will support you in creating helpful habits [20:40] Finding validation from internal sources [26:30]   Quotes “We can decrease the intensity of an emotion by becoming aware of it, and the more descriptive we can be about it, the better.” [8:16] “The more that you can lean into all of the feelings, the more you will adapt.” [9:22] “I want your progress to be as slow as possible because this will give you time to actually formulate new habits.” [21:41]   Resources Mentioned Food For Thought: Emotional Eating Workshop Check out the full episode page here Find Life Coaching for Women Physicians Online Follow Dr. Ali Novitsky on Facebook | Instagram  Subscribe to Life Coaching for Women Physicians on Apple Podcasts Podcast production by the team at Counterweight Creative