Feeling Foggy? Try This!

There are so many times in your life when you might feel a bit foggy-headed and uncertain. Whether it’s because you’re overtired, overwhelmed, or facing too many choices, it is easy to get lost in the fog.

So, what can you do to blow away this feeling and welcome in greater clarity?

I love this three-part practice, which you can do a number of different ways. I call it FoGI, to remind you why you need it and what it is 🙂

What is FoGI?

The practice of FoGI has three parts: Fo stands for forgiveness; G stands for gratitude; and I is for intention.

Each of these is a powerful practice in itself. Combining them is wonderful in that you clear out what is past, give thanks for what is present, and define what you intend for the future. Bringing together all these aspects creates a well-rounded practice for clearing out fogginess and replacing it with a positive mindset and a clear plan moving forward.

Let’s take a look at each aspect in itself.

Fo – Forgiveness

Many spiritual practices, as well as therapeutic techniques, recommend practising unconditional forgiveness as a route to greater happiness. This can be forgiveness of others, and it can also be forgiving yourself.

You find this practice in the lovely words of the Ho’oponopono healing process, for example: “I’m sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.” The simple act of saying these words over and over like a mantra has been found by many to be deeply liberating and uplifting.

The practice of forgiveness is also often found in tapping. While the ‘basic recipe’ calls for you to ‘deeply and completely love and accept yourself’, the word forgive frequently also shows its face. This is a part of self-acceptance: if you cannot forgive yourself, you cannot accept yourself. Forgiveness is a precursor of the self-acceptance and self-compassion that is so powerfully found both in tapping and in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.

G – Gratitude

Much has been written on gratitude, not least ‘The Secret’ by Rhonda Byrne (2006). Establishing a gratitude practice has been found in many different scientific studies to be highly beneficial emotionally and mentally. That’s without even getting into the Law of Attraction benefits touted by numerous writers and speakers.

Giving thanks is a way to change your mindset. You go from an attitude of lack, of victimhood, to one where you recognise what is good in your life. Gratitude improves your mood, it boosts your immune system, and it helps you open up to achieving more.

I – Intention

Achieving more is also the mainstay of this third part of the practice. You can feel great about yourself, and have lots of positive plans and ideas. However, unless you actually do something to practically ground those ideas and that positive mindset it will just stay in your mind.

What you do can be quite small and simple. Part of intention setting is to show your unconscious or the Universe that you are serious about this new attitude, these wonderful plans. If you do absolutely nothing, you get absolutely nothing.

Just writing down an intention is already a great start. Making it into a SMART goal is even better: getting really clear on what you intend, making it realistic and relevant, and deciding by when you will take action, makes it into an action plan that will get you where you want to go.

Applying FoGI

Now, you may be asking how you actually go about doing this FoGI practice to clear out the unwanted fog in your brain and your life?

There are a number of different techniques to choose from, so that you can find what works best for you, or so that you can add some variety to your practice. After all, if you get bored and stop doing something, you’re back to the start. So, having some different options can keep the practice feeling vibrant and enticing.

Journalling

The most tried and true method for this kind of practice is to journal. Plenty of studies have shown the effectiveness of this. Writing down your thoughts and feelings, clarifying what you need to forgive, what you’re grateful for, and what you intend to change, is a powerful way to clarify, make things real to yourself, and create some accountability.

Tapping

Another wonderful way of using this FoGI principle is with EFT tapping. Tapping is proven to create a greater sense of calm, reducing your stress levels. If you follow the FoGI structure while tapping, you will be in a more receptive and creative state to reflect on what you need to forgive, what you feel thankful for, and how you can best move forward.

To do this, you can start by tapping on the side of the hand while saying something like: ‘Even though I’m feeling foggy right now, I deeply and completely love, accept and forgive myself.’ This is repeated three times. If you don’t feel comfortable saying the last part, check out this article on how to adapt this set-up phrase.

Then, as you tap around the points – click here to see an image with the basic recipe points – you can start saying what you feel you need to forgive, what you are grateful for, and what you commit to doing in the future. It really doesn’t matter what you say first, or how many of each you come up with. You may find that as you keep tapping, more things come to mind.

If nothing comes to mind, you could simply start with ‘I forgive myself’, ‘I am so thankful for my life’, and ‘I choose to get clear on what to do starting now’.

Using visual cues

Another thing you can do is use visual cues to clarify the aspects of your FoGI practice. A picture is worth a thousand words, as the saying goes.

An image can help you brainstorm, can be used to explore feelings, and can act as a trigger to remind you of your intentions.

You can look for images online, or in magazines, whatever works for you. Using these, you can create a vision board: either physical or digital. There are some great apps for this. If you’re interested, check out there app suggestions here and here.

Otherwise, why not try going old-school with scissors and a magazine or three. There is something very grounding about the physical act of putting together pictures that express something and inspire you!

Feeling FoGI

I hope this blog post has given you some ideas around how to go from foggy to clear. As you can see, this FoGI practice is an all round good thing that works on past, present and future, setting you up for clarity, contentment and success.

Why not try out one or more of the suggestions around how to go about using it, and feel for yourself the difference it makes? And if you’re at all unclear, or just want some help making a start, why not drop me a line or give me a call? 🙂