Cleaning Up Dog Vomit From A Different Point of View

Tackling My Inner Critic With Compassion

My older Dog and beloved first Corgi named Skipper has been losing his cookies on the carpeted corners of my home.

He knows that vomit is not something we want to see so he tries to inconspicuously hide it where he thinks no one will see it like behind the chair in the living room corner.

He knows that I freak out when I see him vomiting. My freak out includes dragging him by the collar as fast as possible to the hardwood or tiled parts of the house for ease of cleanup.

We don’t always get there and often the cleanup is a carpeting ordeal that has to be dealt with.

I am haunted by the sounds of Skip’s vomiting and feel like I have dog vomit PTSD. I am on hyper-alert and have even imagined that I’ve heard him vomiting when he is not.

What Expectations Am I Falling Prey To?

It seems silly to me that something so simple like dog vomit can send me into such a tail-spin.

As I observe my thoughts around vomiting, in general, this is what I come up with;

• I have a belief that vomit will ruin a carpet.
• I am concerned when I hear him vomiting that he is sick and that it could be something really serious.
• People and pets should only vomit around me when it is easier and more convenient for me to pick it up.
• Being sick should only happen on my watch when I can control it.
• I should be able to prevent sickness because it’s in my control.

Oh, and did I mention I am a control freak. Yeah, that makes this whole vomiting thing even more out of control for me.

Examining The Insanity Makes Us Saner

This simple reflection of my thoughts on vomit helps me to reframe a thought process that has been putting me into fight and flight.

So here’s what I do, I follow the insanity instead of trying to fight with it.

It’s the same idea as follow the money so you can find out who or what is responsible for the predicament.

This gets accomplished by asking myself to get real about the good, the bad, and the ugly of what I feel about a topic uncensored. In this case, what does vomiting mean to me?

You can use this question for yourself because it is very effective in getting to the root of your feelings on a particular topic.

The question “What does _______ mean to me?” is something to keep asking yourself until you have exhausted all responses. Lay these responses all out on the table by writing them down and then asking each one of them “Is this true for me?”

**Caution, DO NOT JUDGE YOUR RESPONSES**

This simple exercise can save you years of therapy and allow you to unravel from the inside-out.

My Thoughts Are Suspect And Could Have Me Locked Up On Further Examination

When we see our thoughts laid out before us on a topic that gets us worked up, we may feel appalled. Like how could I think something like that? Am I crazy?

The short answer is YES YOU ARE CRAZY. And YOU ARE IN GOOD COMPANY. Because we all have a crazy voice in our heads churning out thoughts that can make the hairs on the back of our necks stand straight up.

This is a good thing because it gives you a clue as to why you over-react to certain things. Remember, follow the thoughts to get to the root of your freak-out. There is no way around this.

It’s much easier to acknowledge the crazy then to allow it to dictate your behaviors and actions.

And sure, for the most part, you will find that initially, you will still do the crazy things you do. However, it will now be easier to catch yourself when you do. That’s what being conscious and awake means.

Being aware versus acting upon your autopilot will allow you a freedom that says “OK” I may do stupid shit sometimes. When I do I now have the opportunity to learn from it which is a great first start in acknowledging your crazy.

Letting Ourselves Off The Hook Will Allow Us To Become The Compassion Our Souls Are Dying For

The key to all of this is about being able to be more kind to ourselves. Because most of what we do gets judged by our inner critic.

If you can live side by side with your inner critic without a point of view, you will find your inner critic to be most amusing.

The ability to laugh or smile in the face of some of our most intense judgment will leave you with a sense of freedom.

It’s like admitting that I have an asshole that lives inside my head that would like me to believe that I am a no-good loser. And it’s about the acceptance that that asshole voice does not define who you are.

It’s not possible to “BE” your emotions, your behaviors, or your thoughts. You, my friends, are infinite beings having an experience of life from all different angles. Being what we think we are is an egoic perspective that always short changes our magnificence.

Lessons About Vomit From A Saner Point of View

• Dogs Vomit sometimes because their bodies just want to get rid of stuff that isn’t working.
• Dogs are notorious for eating or picking up things in their travels that do not agree with them.
• Most dogs are not going to vomit where you would like them too.
• Vomit From A Carpet Can Be Cleaned!!!
• Vomit won’t kill me and it surely will not kill my dog.

These thoughts are the polar opposite of thoughts my silly head would have me believe. And isn’t this true of most freak-outs?

The compassion part of this whole ordeal is the ability to reframe and redirect the freak-out energies. This allows me to clean up the puke with a “NO BIG DEAL ATTITUDE” and mean it.

So YAY to Vomit and YAY to me for having the willingness to have a different kind of relationship to dog vomit.

Thank You For Reading!