Change How You See Yourself | A Walk to Feel Better in Your Mind + Body

If the way you’ve been seeing yourself hasn’t been feeling good lately, this walk is for you.

• Notice the thoughts shaping how you see yourself
• Learn how to create space between thought and feeling
• Shift your inner voice in a way that feels natural
• Start building a healthier, more supportive self-image

Take this walk with me — and begin seeing yourself differently.

✨ Recently ranked Top 5 Walking Podcast in the U.S. by MillionPodcasts

Transcript

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Welcome to the Healing Mile. I'm Carrie, your walking bestie. And by the end of this walk, you're going to start changing the way you see yourself in a way that feels supportive, natural, and real in both your mind and your body. If you've ever had that moment where you caught yourself in a reflection or noticed a thought about yourself and it just didn't feel good, you're not alone. I want you to think about that moment for a second because it happens quickly. You catch yourself in a mirror or notice that thought about something you said or something you wish you had done differently, and before you even have time to process it, there's already a reaction happening inside of you. It's almost automatic. A thought shows up and your body responds right along with it. There's a feeling that comes with it too, and that feeling can shift your entire mood in a matter of seconds. And what's interesting is that these moments feel small, almost unimportant when you notice them individually. Yet when they repeat over time, they begin to shape the way we carry ourselves, the way we move throughout our day, and the way we relate to ourselves when no one else is around. So if you ever felt like you want to feel better about yourself and you've tried thinking more positively or being more confident on purpose, and it hasn't really landed in a lasting way, I want you to know that there's a different way to approach this. And that's what we're going to do together on this walk. So let's begin just by noticing our body moving. Notice the rhythm of your steps, the way your feet are meeting the ground, and the natural pace you've settled into without needing to adjust anything yet. Let your arms move in a way that feels easy, or let them rest comfortably at your sides if that feels better for you. Take a slow breath in through your nose, allowing your chest and your ribs to expand. Then let that breath move out through your mouth in a way that feels relaxed and unforced. Take one more breath like that, giving yourself a moment to arrive into your body, to feel your presence in this space, and to recognize that you're here for yourself right now. As we continue walking, allow your shoulders to soften, your jaw to unclench, and your face to relax just a little. Notice how even small shifts like this begin to change how your body feels as you move. There's nothing you need to fix. There's nothing you need to figure out. You're simply bringing awareness into your body and allowing that awareness to guide you. The way we see ourselves is something that has been shaped over time through a combination of experiences, conversations, environments, and repeated thoughts that have gradually become familiar. And familiarity is a powerful influence on the mind. Because once something feels familiar, it begins to feel true, even if it's not. So when a thought about yourself shows up, especially one that carries a certain tone or feeling, your mind recognizes it instantly and continues the pattern without stopping to question it. And this is where it starts to feel really real in everyday life. It's the moment you're getting ready and you catch your reflection, and within a second, your focus lands on the one thing you wish looked different. It's walking away from a conversation and your mind starts replaying it, going over what you said, how you said it, wondering how it came across to the other person. It's opening your phone, scrolling for a few minutes, and suddenly you're comparing yourself without even meaning to. Noticing what someone else's looks like, what they're doing, how they're living. And a thought quietly shows up that makes you hesitate. None of these moments feel big on their own. They happen quickly and they might pass just as fast, but they leave something behind. That feeling, a shift in how you see yourself in that moment. And when those moments repeat over time, they start to build a pattern. They start to influence how you carry yourself when you walk into a room. They influence whether you speak up or stay quiet. They influence how you treat yourself when no one else is around. And because it happens so automatically, it feels like it's just part of you. Like this is just how your mind works. Like this is just the way you are. But what we're starting to see here is something different. We're starting to see that this isn't who you are at your core. This is something that has just been practiced and repeated. It's a pattern your mind has learned. And once you can see it that way, even just a little, something begins to open up. Because patterns can shift. And that's what we're beginning to do here as we walk. Shifting those thought patterns step by step. Our brain is constantly looking for patterns. And once it identifies a pattern, it becomes very efficient at finding evidence that supports it. This is part of how the brain conserves energy and helps you move through the world more quickly. When it comes to how you see yourself, this process can begin to reinforce certain ways of thinking that don't feel good, simply because those thoughts have been repeated often enough to become familiar. And this is where your body becomes part of the experience. Every thought that carries that tone or feeling, and that tone creates a physical response in your body. You might notice a subtle tightening, a shift in posture, a change in your breathing, or a drop in your overall mood. These responses from those thoughts may feel small in the moment, yet they too over time create a pattern that your body begins to recognize and expect. So now there's a connection between your thoughts and your physical state. A thought appears, your body responds, and that response reinforces the thought. This creates a loop that can continue without much awareness. What begins to change this process is your ability to notice the thought without immediately following it. You create that space, even for a moment, you can introduce a new possibility. Your body has the opportunity to respond differently, and your mind has the opportunity to explore a different perspective. So let's test this out. As we continue to walk, bring a light awareness to your thoughts without trying to control them. Allow them to come and go in a way that feels natural. And when a thought about yourself appears, take a moment to notice it from a slight distance, as if you're standing next to it rather than inside of it. This small shift allows you to see the thought more clearly without becoming fully absorbed in it, or in other words, believing it. From this place, gently ask yourself if there are other ways to see the same moment, the same situation, or the same version of yourself. There are no perfect answers. You're simply opening the door to another perspective. That perspective might feel neutral at first, but it might feel slightly more supportive. It might feel like a small adjustment rather than a complete overhaul or change of the thought, and that is enough. So instead of trying to remember everything that we're saying from this walk, I want to give you something really, really simple that you can come back to anytime. It's three little letters, and it's N, P, R. N for notice, P for pause, R for replace. That's it. The next time a thought about yourself or a conversation pops up, start with notice. Just recognize it. Oh, there it is. No reaction needed, just noticing already starts to change your relationship with it. Then pause. One deep breath is enough. That small pause creates space between the thought and the feeling. And then you'll start to feel that space open up. And from there, replace. Not with something perfect, not with something that feels fake, just something that feels a little better. Let me give you a real example so you can hear what this sounds like. You walk away from a conversation and your mind starts replaying it. I shouldn't have said that. That probably sounded weird. Why did I say it like that? Now you use NPR. You notice it. Oh, I'm replaying that. There's that thought. You pause, take a deep breath, and then you replace it with something a little more supportive. Like that was just a normal conversation, or I showed up as myself in that moment. Or even it's okay to be human in conversations. You feel the difference, even if it's small. And that's the shift. We're not rewriting the whole story, we're just choosing a different sentence, a different thought. And then we keep going. You notice it, you pause, you replace it, and you move on with your day. And the more you do that, the more natural it starts to feel. You'll catch it sooner, you'll feel that space faster, and over time your thoughts will begin to change. And most importantly, how you view yourself starts to change. So as we bring this walk to a close, let's repeat a few affirmations together. I like to call them thoughts on purpose. You can repeat them silently or out loud, whatever feels best for you. I am learning to see myself with more understanding. I am allowing my thoughts to become more supportive. I am creating space for a kinder inner voice. I am building a stronger connection between my mind and my body. Notice how those words feel in your body. And take a moment to notice how your body feels right now. Notice your breath moving in and out. Notice your beautiful body as it carries you forward. And notice the space in your beautiful mind that you've created just by bringing your awareness here. There's something really powerful in that. Because today wasn't about changing everything all at once, it was just about seeing something clearly. The way your thoughts show up, the way your body responds, and the way those patterns have been shaping how you see yourself over time. And now there's a new awareness there, a quiet understanding that the way you see yourself isn't fixed. It's something that has been practiced and something that can continue to evolve. And what you did on this walk matters more than it might seem. You noticed your thoughts without immediately stepping into them. You created space between the thought and the feeling. You allowed another perspective to exist, even if it felt small. That's how this begins. In these small intentional pauses, where you choose to stay present with yourself in a different way. And over time, those pauses start to change how your mind responds. They start to change how your body feels. They start to change the way you carry yourself, in the way you speak to yourself, in the way you show up in your life. So as we finish this walk, you don't need to hold on to everything. You don't need to remember every word. Just take this with you. You have the ability to notice your thoughts and the ability to create space and the ability to choose a different way of seeing yourself. And every time you come back to that, you're building something new, something more supported and connected, something that feels better to live in. Keep walking with that, keep returning to that, because this is something you can come back to anytime, in a mirror, in a moment, in a thought, and remind yourself that the way you see yourself can continue to grow. And you're already on your way. Well, we made it to the end of this walk, and I'm so happy you're here. Be sure to follow the podcast so you don't miss an episode. Share it with someone you may think it would benefit, and leave a five-star review. It helps us reach more people, and it means more than you'll ever know. You'll find helpful tools and resources linked in the show notes, along with an option to support the podcast if that's on your heart. And don't forget to listen to the healing minute this week that goes along with the walks. It's a short meditation to help you carry some calm and peace into the rest of your day. And as always, thank you so much for walking with me today here on the Healing Mile. And I'll see you on the path again soon.